1st Grade
by kybeech
Summary: It's Jeon Jungkook's first day of high school and he already hates it. Until, that is, he runs into a dashing boy who just won't leave his head. Pure fluff. Contains: Vkook/Taekook, Yoonmin, Namjin. Random other people were added bc I needed names.
1. Chapter 1 - JK

**Hi friends, welcome to 33 chapters of whatever I felt like writing (Edit: I lied, it's way more than 33 chapters bc I didn't want to end it lol). I think it's cute so I wrote it.**

**Jungkook is very nervous about his first day at school. He wants to keep his head down but that goes wrong very quickly.**

_**1 – JK focus**_

Jungkook stepped off the bus and immediately felt incredibly small. There were hundreds of people here. Hundreds. Hugging his backpack closer to his shoulders, he shuffled along apprehensively with the other students. He felt like the smallest one there and yet he still wanted to shrink further. He was fifteen years old. He would pay good money not to be noticed.

Jungkook had graduated in the summer. It had been one of the best days of his life: he got a party, friends, visits from a part of his family he didn't even know existed – oh, and he had also been moved out of his beloved town to go to a school advancement program in the middle of Seoul. Not a single person he grew up with came with him. Everyone was back home. No, this is home, idiot. Jungkook silently scolded himself. He hated that stupid positive mindset being drilled into him by his parents.

Nothing was positive about this. It was a fifteen-minute walk alone to the bus stop followed by a 45-minute bus ride to the school with no friends and no phone. It was boiling hot and way too cramped and Jungkook doubted that the classrooms would be much better. The school would finish at 4 o'clock and Jungkook would get home at 2 am after the ridiculous study sessions needed for high school. That would give him three hours of sleep before having to be on the bus by six and starting the whole thing over and over again. Just one day after another. For three years.

The walk to the main doors was weirdly placed and annoyingly winding. It was made out of several different types of tarmac that hadn't been replaced for a very long time and it kept backtracking and veering randomly in any direction it chose. It would be so much quicker to cut across the grass, but if that was acceptable, everyone would do it. Jungkook just needed to learn to keep his head down. Bitterly acknowledging the grandiose mahogany doors, Jungkook slugged up the steps and wandered through the hallways searching for his locker.

Jungkook's first conclusion: this school was not big enough. Students were slouching against the lockers, sitting on the floor and Jungkook had to fight his way through a mass of legs and bodies, praying that no one was blocking his locker. Thankfully, it was a clear path.

Jungkook's second conclusion: this school was not for him. There was gum everywhere. There were girls everywhere. Those two factors alone were enough to trigger his anxiety. At least he had grown out his nails that summer; it gave him something to distract himself with.

Jungkook's third conclusion: he needed to find some friends. Fast. He hadn't seen a single soul in the building not engaged in some kind of conversation with at least one other person. He was beginning to grow paranoid about being by himself so he slung his bag into his locker and ran up the stairs to his form room.

He was so distracted by the stress of it all, so focused on keeping his head down that Jungkook totally forgot to look where he was going. He swung himself around the corner of the landing and collided painfully with someone walking the other way. They both recoiled at the impact and fell to the hard, varnished floor. Jungkook shot to his feet, mortified and ignoring the searing pain in his shoulder. _Well done, Jungkook, the bell hasn't even rung yet and you've already made an enemy._ He could feel himself blushing as he offered his hand to the other, who had fallen on their side.

"I'm so, so sorry! I wasn't looking where I was going, it was completely my fault! Are you okay? Are you hurt?" Jungkook mentally punched himself for sounding so desperate. It only just clicked that someone else had been walking next to them when they collided. _Yay, another witness._

The person on the floor groaned and slowly pushed himself up to a sitting position. He gripped Jungkook's hand firmly and pulled himself up to stand next to his companion. Jungkook suppressed a gasp as he took in the sight of his victim.

He was gorgeous. Perfectly dishevelled orange-dyed hair blazed on the top of his head, practically glowing against the dull colour scheme of the corridors. Black eyeliner gave his dark eyes mystery and definition, as well as giving him a rebellious, bad-boy vibe. He looked good in school uniform. Like, really good; you can't say that about a lot of people. Reluctantly, Jungkook tore his eyes away from the ravishing boy and glanced over the other. Less stunning, but attractive nonetheless. He had pure black hair and lighter eyes. He was also about an inch shorter than him.

Jungkook was snapped back to reality by the black-haired boy slapping the other in the chest.  
"Taehyung, what did we say about not killing any of the first graders?" Taehyung. A beautiful name for a beautiful person. Taehyung rolled his eyes gently and smiled at Jungkook, whose heart definitely skipped more than one beat.

"I'm sorry," his voice sounded like liquified velvet: so deep and smooth Jungkook almost forgot to concentrate on the words, "I did promise Jimin I wouldn't fuck up any first years, but I guess that kind of failed, huh?" He scratched the back of his head awkwardly and flicked his gaze between Jungkook and the other boy – Jimin. Jungkook was shaken.

"No, no, please, it was all my fault, I shouldn't have been running and I'm so sorry if I hurt you," Jungkook blurted out again, earning a crooked grin from Taehyung.

"What's your name?" Jungkook genuinely nearly forgot.

"Jeon Jungkook," he thrust out his hand and Taehyung shook it vigorously before passing it to Jimin, who thankfully had less of a grip.

"I'm Kim Taehyung, this is Park Jimin. We're in 2nd grade." Jungkook smiled. He was making friends. Not just any friends, older boys. Jimin looked at his watch and sighed.

"Yeah, which means we get into slightly less trouble than you for being late. Run now and you'll be on time, probably early, even." Taehyung ruffled his own hair, making it messier than it had been. Jungkook wanted so badly to touch it. But…

"See you around, Jungkook. Now go, go and try not to get detention on your first day." Taehyung and Jimin continued walking leaving Jungkook to jog a little more slowly down the corridor. Maybe this place wouldn't be so bad after all.


	2. Chapter 2 - V

**Literally the last chapter but from Taehyung's perspective. It seems that both he and his best friend have the same problem of wanting what they shouldn't.**

**_2 – V focus_**

Taehyung looked in the mirror and sighed. His hair was static and refusing to stay in place and his uniform was creased and ragged from being crammed to the back of his wardrobe for most of the summer. In six minutes, he would be on the bus, talking to Jimin, studying harder than ever as if there had never been a vacation at all.

He swiped his bag from the stairs and shut the front door behind him. As disappointed as he was to be back in this vicious cycle of study, he was excited to see Jimin again. They had sat next to each other in English in 1st grade and bonded over their lack of interest in the subject. They became fast friends and rarely spoke to anyone else, at least not on a regular basis. Of course, the rumours started that they were dating and Taehyung smiled at the memory of finding that out.

He would never date Jimin. Taehyung didn't have a type per se, but one of his basic criteria was that his partner could not be shorter than him. It just felt weird. Besides, his friend had his sights set higher. Well, in all honesty, about a centimetre higher, but that wasn't the point. Taehyung found himself speeding up, eager to learn how his friend was holding up.

The familiar janky bus pulled over to the side of the road and Taehyung clambered on along with a few others. Spying Jimin in his usual seat, he swung himself over to sit next to his best friend. Jimin beamed at the presence of a familiar face and greeted Taehyung warmly. Since neither of them was allowed to use their phones, this was the first contact they had had with each other in weeks. They caught up with the basic stuff fairly quickly and Taehyung asked what had been on his mind all summer.

"So…are you over him yet?" Jimin looked down and shook his head. _Dammit. _They had been counting on this working since Christmas. He looked so frustrated it was heart-breaking. Taehyung put his arm around his hyung's shoulder to comfort him. Jimin smiled.

"I thought I was this morning, you know. I was so ready to tell you that 'I'm cured! It's finally gone!' and then I get on the bus and…" he gestured subtly to the 3rd grader sitting a few rows in front of them. Taehyung tutted in sympathy and stroked Jimin's arm. "…he dyed his hair, Taehyung!"

Taehyung had noticed. Min Yoongi was a curious character. He kept to himself a lot of the time and didn't really care what other people thought of him, which is why his hair had stood out so much. He was on the basketball team and he mainly hung around his teammates. Jimin had first sighted Yoongi when he was practising on one of the outdoor courts late after school. After that, his crush spiralled and deepened until Taehyung found it hard to keep his attention when Yoongi was within 30 feet of them. Taehyung liked listening to Jimin talk about Yoongi. He was a good friend and kept up to date so that Jimin didn't feel that he was boring his classmate.

Taehyung had clocked Yoongi's hair as soon as he sat down. It had lightened from an ebony black to a more natural reddish-brown. Taehyung thought that this suited him better, and Jimin thought that he always looked stunning no matter what. He slightly insulted that Jimin thought that of Yoongi but only laughed at the sight of his new look. Although he supposed that was rather the point – to break the monotony of school. That was rather the point of Taehyung, in all honesty.

Shuddering to a halt, the bus jerked and wobbled as the overflow of children raced to the door. Taehyung found it difficult not to feel sorry for the 1st graders learning their first and most important rule: age takes precedence. The 3rd grade made up half of the school, since another one a few miles away burned down and every child was granted another year of high school. An executive decision made the place way too crowded. For the most part, they were loud and dominant and no one argued over the fact that they owned the school. Taehyung just thanked the stars that he wasn't the youngest anymore.

Both of them remembered what their first day was like. It was awkward and lonely. Jimin had it worse since he was smaller and used to get picked on a lot for his height, which never made much sense to Taehyung. Jimin couldn't control the growth of his bones, he didn't choose to be shorter; he just was. Nevertheless, the two made a pact to make the 1st graders' lives as easy as possible. No laughing at them, no shoving past them.

The pair departed from the hot metal container and stepped out into the throng of people. Their conversation drifted back to school life: homework, subjects, teachers so that by the time they reached the doors, they were already sufficiently bored. Deciding they were a little early, they started to walk randomly around the corridors, re-familiarising themselves with the layout. They had been walking in silence until Jimin asked,

"But what about you? Is your heart set on anyone?" Taehyung smiled. No. Absolutely not. There had been a girl in middle school he was really close to, but she confessed her 'undying love' and shut Taehyung out when he did not return the sentiment. Truthfully, no one had caught his eye in this place, despite the sheer volume of people.

"Really, Jimin? We've been through this. I don't get crushes and I just don't find anyone here that attractive. And I'm not like you; I can't just run into someone and immediately fall in love- "

Suddenly Taehyung was on the floor. He had fallen – no, he had been knocked onto his side and his arm had cushioned his landing. He felt dizzy and was just about aware of a hasty apology and Jimin laughing. Prick. Noticing a hand stretched out to help him, he took it and regained his balance. As he looked up at his attacker, he could think of one word and one word only.

_Damn._

The kid was a 1st grader, but was the same height as Taehyung and could easily be mistaken for someone older. His downy hair was tinted faintly red and shone gorgeously in the harsh, fluorescent lights. He had a strong jawline, but soft brown eyes that reminded Taehyung of his dog – beautiful, adoring, endearing. The stiff uniform highlighted his figure, his strong arms, his slim torso. Taehyung's daydream was shattered by Jimin hitting him hard in the chest.

"Taehyung, what did we say about not killing any of the first graders?" Taehyung tore his gaze away from the boy to roll his eyes at his friend, who looked confused at his reaction. He smiled at the boy.

"I'm sorry, I did tell Jimin I wouldn't fuck up any of the first years," Taehyung felt strangely hot and looked back at Jimin as an invisible support system. He scratched the back of his head, suddenly regretting dying his hair, "but I guess that kind of failed, huh?" The boy laughed slightly and apologised again. Taehyung didn't bother focusing on the words, just his voice. It was smooth and naturally quiet. Taehyung smiled subconsciously and asked his burning question.

"What's your name?" The boy paused. Had Taehyung come on too strong? Was he scared of being reported? Taehyung was very afraid that he'd asked the wrong thing until the boy replied,

"Jeon Jungkook," and extended his arm. Taehyung shook his hand strongly, but lost confidence quickly and passed it to Jimin. He could feel Jimin's impatience, but he didn't care.

"I'm Kim Taehyung, this is Park Jimin. We're 2nd graders." Jungkook nodded at them both and Taehyung smiled back. Jimin looked at his watch and sighed.

"Yeah, which means we get into slightly less trouble than you for being late. Run now and you'll be on time, probably early, even." Taehyung wanted to throw Jimin's watch out of the window, but he couldn't. Instead, he ran his hand through his hair to calm his restless hands and added,

"See you around, Jungkook. Now go, go and try not to get detention on your first day," and followed Jimin down the stairs, hearing Jungkook skip off behind him. He was so distracted by the temptation to turn around that he forgot Jimin existed.

"Sorry, what?" he asked when he became aware that Jimin was talking. Jimin rolled his eyes and repeated himself.

"I said you were right: You can't run into someone and fall in love. It seems that they have to run into you." Taehyung snapped his head to the side to glare at him.

"What?" he asked and Jimin grinned, clearly trying to suppress laughter.

"You heard. You don't think I saw your little performance back there? I know that you don't swear unless you're stressed and you never blush."

"So?" Taehyung retaliated, offended that his friend was being so presumptuous, "I was embarrassed – I just got floored by a fifteen-year-old. Besides, that conversation lasted about four seconds," _thanks to you,_ "even you couldn't fall in love that fast." Jimin gave him a dubious look but said nothing.

They walked in silence and Taehyung's mind flooded with thoughts about the brown-eyed boy. He was beautiful and kind and tall. But he was young and new and, more importantly in Taehyung's mind, he was a 'he'. And Taehyung was straight. Suddenly re-contemplating his entire existence, he very nearly walked into a door and wondered at the effect of Jeon Jungkook on his mind.


	3. Chapter 3 - JM

**Jimin has a stressful life, but he has someone who makes it easier for him. And someone who makes it a whole lot harder.**

**_3 – JM focus_**

Aside from the morning, the remainder of Jimin's day was boring as hell. He shared one lesson with Taehyung plus lunch, most of which they spent studying anyway, so there really wasn't a lot of time to discuss the morning.

And it had been a pretty eventful morning. Personally, Jimin didn't think the kid, Jungkook, had been that attractive, but he had to admit, he had impeccable timing. That whole conversation was a minefield for taking the piss out of Taehyung, and Jimin couldn't believe he had to wait for English the next day to do it.

Jimin walked down the sidewalk that evening after school and knew he was a long way away from going home. It was dance practice for two hours, then study for another six hours, then a long bus journey home which brought him to 2 am. At least he was more used to it than last year. It had nearly killed him last year.

The dusky twilight already lit the street by the time Jimin got to the studio. He'd loved dancing since he was really little, and started getting lessons when he began middle school. Dancing was something he was passionate about, something he could throw his soul into. He pushed open the heavy doors and wandered into the changing rooms.

"Jimin!" A familiar voice greeted him chirpily as the door shut behind him. Jimin smiled. Hoseok was a year older than him, but they were still better friends than anyone else in Jimin's grade. He was an excellent dancer and an incredible choreographer, his creative mind never failing to completely astound Jimin. They chatted while they got changed, catching up about the summer and life in general. Hoseok didn't know about Yoongi; they weren't that close.

They walked together into the studio, which was freezing as usual. One wall was entirely mirrors and one wall was a window looking out onto the rest of the sports club: basketball courts, a football pitch, etc.

The rest of the students filtered in, followed by the teacher who was earlier than normal, but still about five minutes late. She started the music and Jimin danced everything he remembered from the previous term, which was, admittedly, quite a lot. He only slipped up twice (fewer times than everyone else, he thought) and was very out of breath when the song finished.

Everyone trudged over to fetch their water but Jimin moved closer to the window first to cool down. Despite the darkness, there was someone shooting hoops on one of the courts. After a few seconds of just watching, Jimin became engrossed, sharing in the player's delight when he scored and in his despair when he missed. Eventually, the player got tired enough to take off his hoodie and when he did, Jimin froze.

No wonder he had been so encapsulated by him. It was Yoongi. Because of course it was. It was everything Jimin could do not to break the glass. He was furious at himself for this. Over the summer, without constant exposure to the older boy, he could have sworn he had gotten over it. He was so excited to tell Taehyung that life was fine, _easy_ again. He had strolled onto the bus with a spring in his step. A spring that was utterly obliterated as soon as he saw Yoongi again. Jimin just didn't think he was that weak.

Apparently, he fumed for a little bit too long, and he flinched when he felt Hoseok's hand on his shoulder.

"Jimin? Are you okay? Come on, we've got a rehearsal to get to."

Jimin danced for the rest of the session with fire and fury, unsure of any other time he had performed with that amount of fervour. At the end of the rehearsal, a fresh wave of annoyance overcame him as he remembered that the way out of the building meant passing the courts. There was a very, very low chance that Yoongi would acknowledge anyone walking past but in Jimin's opinion, the less time spent around him, the better.

Jimin got changed quickly and walked quickly out of the building without waiting for Hoseok or speaking to anyone. He didn't look up, but his ears formed an image with the sounds around him. He could hear the ball striking the tarmac repeatedly, Yoongi breathing heavily, taking a run up and shooting. The sound of the ball ricocheting off metal made Jimin cringe as he could tell Yoongi didn't make it. Yoongi groaned in exasperation and threw the ball to the other side of the court, frustrated, slumping against the railings.

Jimin passed closest to Yoongi and he could swear his hearing became hypersensitive. He could hear Yoongi's phone switch on and off as he checked the time and he could just about make out him whispering quickly under his breath – rapping, maybe? It didn't matter, though. _Because you don't care about him, _thought one part of Jimin. _Stop lying, you know you love him, _said the bigger part of him. And apparently, Jimin himself, if what happened next was anything to go by.

"Oh my God, love who?" gasped Hoseok's voice from almost directly behind him, making Jimin jump.

"What? Nothing, I was just…singing something," lied Jimin, letting his friend walk beside him. Hoseok scoffed,

"Yeah, right. One, no song ever has that lyric in it. Two, I've heard you sing, Jimin, and when you do, you really go for it. Three, you were fully trying to kill that guy with your eyes earlier, so I'm going to guess it's him. What's his name, though? I only saw the back of his head."

Jimin mumbled the answer, deciding he trusted Hoseok enough.

"No way!" shouted Hoseok and Jimin punched him hard in the arm.

"No way!" whispered Hoseok quietly, "you've got a crush on Min Yoongi? That's so adorable!"

Jimin blushed and prepared to spend the rest of the walk to the study centre with Hoseok, thoroughly regretting his decision.

**Congrats, you're 1/11 of the way through :) have fun**


	4. Chapter 4 - JK

**_(I stole the name of the girl in this chapter from one of my friends but she's totally not like how I wrote her ily becks xx)_**

**With some difficulty, Jungkook finally makes a friend.**

_4 – JK focus_

It was the morning of Jungkook's second day of high school and he was tired as all hell. He had gotten four hours of sleep. That was definitely not enough. He would have to get used to it, though; life wasn't going to get easier by magic.

Jungkook had made a few friends. Not any that he could actually hang out with on a regular basis, but he didn't have any time or energy for that anyway. He had gotten to know some of the people he sat next to in lessons and been friendly with a confidence that surprised himself. People laughed at his jokes and didn't seem to mind his presence, which was really all Jungkook wanted.

Life had brightened up, however, when he discovered the cross-country club that was on Tuesday lunch. A little bit of extra digging and he found that hardly anyone went. Perfect. Jungkook loved running. It cleared his head to be outside, exercising in the open air and he definitely preferred it by himself. This was something he could do to take some of the edge off the mountainous workload that was quickly stacking up.

That lunchtime, he got changed and started to run. It was cold outside, but Jungkook warmed up quickly. His mind relaxed and he just took in his surroundings as they flowed past him. The school was better equipped than he realised: it had basketball and tennis courts, both of which were occupied, a football pitch and something that Jungkook vaguely recognised as a lacrosse pitch. His old school never had these kinds of facilities.

As he ran next to the basketball courts, he was suddenly knocked sideways. Jungkook landed on the floor with a sharp pain in his head, wondering if he could ever go a full day in this school without falling over. He sat up and saw a basketball slowly rolling away from him. Rubbing his head, he saw an older boy – 3rd grade? – leave one of the courts. The student looked at Jungkook but retrieved the ball first.

"Kid, you alright?" he asked without offering to help Jungkook up. Jungkook stumbled to his feet and stood awkwardly, looking at the floor.

"Yeah, I think so. I'm sorry, I wasn't looking where I was going and- " he got major de ja vu from the day before when he had muttered those same exact words. Wow, he really needed to start looking where he was going. The other boy smiled.

"You're a first grader, right?" Jungkook nodded. "You've got a lot to learn. I'm Min Yoongi." He held out his hand and Jungkook shook it.

"Jeon Jungkook." He looked over the boy for the first time. He had pretty, brown hair and matching eyes. He was shorter than Jungkook, but he had an air of maturity and sobriety around him that showed on his naturally handsome face. He was wearing a sports kit and a worn hoodie at least two sizes too big for him. _Not as hot as Taehyung_, chided Jungkook's mind and he mentally punched himself.

"Tell you what, Jungkook, there's a pretty high chance you're going to get killed by someone here sooner or later and I'd rather that happened when we're more than two days in to the year, so how about I show you the ropes so you don't piss anyone off immediately?"

Jungkook felt strangely honoured at this offer and obviously took it. There were some sketchy types in this school and he really didn't want to get on their nerves.

"Sure, that sounds great!"

"Cool. Get changed, I'll meet you outside," and Yoongi walked back to collect his things. Jungkook jogged back to the main building, wondering how he was able to get along with almost anyone that wasn't actually in his year. He got changed hastily and felt excited that someone was willing to teach him about this place, even if it was someone a little bit brooding. Yoongi was the type Jungkook's mother would label as a 'bad influence'. Jungkook thought he seemed nice enough.

As he waited in the oddly-shaped courtyard around the back of the school, Jungkook heard a familiar voice and lowered his head immediately. He pretended to be fiddling with his sleeves and inspecting his nails until Taehyung and Jimin passed him by. He wasn't entirely sure why he felt so flushed, but he thought it was best not to make eye contact with either of them. Even though he wanted Taehyung to notice him. Badly.

"Rule one," Jungkook looked round as Yoongi entered the courtyard, now wearing a uniform that had definitely seen better days, "the third grade is in charge. We run this place, so don't get the way of any of us, especially if you're new." Jungkook nodded to show he understood and followed Yoongi who was speaking quietly and bluntly and had continued walking through the entrance on the other side of the courtyard.

Jungkook listened eagerly as he learned about people, teachers, etiquette – things he would never have known about otherwise. As they walked randomly through the corridors, they passed a girl who smiled sweetly and waved at Yoongi, who had ceased his sentence very abruptly. Jungkook was about to ask when he got the answer anyway.

"Lee Seohyun. Your basic high school cheerleader. Smart, sexy, popular, and will literally sleep with anyone if she knows it will start drama. She…" Yoongi paused as he tried to phrase the next sentence, "has taken a bit of a shine to me the past year. I've declined her offer, but what can I say, the girl's persistent."

Jungkook turned around to watch the girl walk away. She did seem basic. Long black hair, tall, slim frame, alluring gait. If she was the head cheerleader, it seemed odd that she wouldn't be able to get anyone she wanted, especially the shooting guard of the basketball team.

"If you don't mind me asking," Jungkook objected, knowing full well he was going to ask anyway, "why _aren't _you going out with her?" Yoongi smiled almost to himself and just said,

"Not my type."

Turning to walk up the library stairs, they passed two others walking the other way. Jungkook accidentally made eye contact with one and was met with the familiar, intense gaze of Kim Taehyung. His dark eyes seemed to perforate Jungkook's spirit, invading every corner of his soul. The moment ended far too quickly and Jungkook resisted the call to turn back. He suddenly became paranoid that he had missed some valuable piece of information until he noticed that Yoongi had fallen silent again. As casually as humanly possible, Jungkook asked,

"What about those two? Do you know anything about them?" Yoongi took a deep breath before answering.

"Park Jimin and Kim Taehyung. 2nd grade. Everyone thinks they're dating but they aren't; they're just friends."

_Just friends, _Jungkook thought, _thank God for that._


	5. Chapter 5 - V

**Taehyung rethinks his life choices and comes to an interesting conclusion**

**_5 – V focus_**

Third period English was never a good idea. Not only was Taehyung tired and starving, but he was also being tortured by Jimin about the day before. As much as he told Jimin that it had been a normal conversation, that he was reading way too far into it, he wasn't entirely sure who he was trying to convince. It had sounded normal enough, but it didn't feel normal. It felt…electric. Well, not quite electric, but something sparked. Taehyung didn't know what it was and it scared him, but he couldn't help revisiting the conversation, playing it over and over again. In that respect, Jimin was being very useful.

Jimin and Hoseok had a dance practice at lunch, and Taehyung was tagging along to be a good audience. It would give him time to collect his thoughts and actually sort out the mess in his head. Hoseok was older, but Taehyung didn't care. He was friendly and funny, which was all that really mattered. Jimin was good friends with him and said that he was really nice and supportive about Yoongi. If he hadn't been, Taehyung would have killed him, so that was lucky.

The bell rang for lunch while Jimin was still quoting parts of the conversation. Taehyung laughed and swore he would kill Jimin and they both left the classroom giggling. They had arranged to meet Hoseok in the empty classroom at the top of the school, which was also the biggest. By the time they had climbed the four flights of stairs, Hoseok had already cleared the desks to the side of the room to form a makeshift practice space. Jimin and Hoseok went straight into sorting out choreography while Taehyung sat on one of the tables and opened his maths textbook, fully aware that he had no intentions of actually doing maths.

As far as he could remember, Taehyung had never shown any interest in boys. Admittedly, he had never shown any interest in anybody, not even the girl in middle school who had liked him so much. He had just never found anybody whom he really adored before. He saw certain people as attractive but he never wanted anyone. Until Jungkook. Something about those eyes had awoken something in Taehyung, something warm and freezing at the same time. Something that made his heart lurch and his stomach drop. He felt that twenty-eight hours was too long to go without diving into Jungkook's clear brown eyes.

Holy shit. Maybe Jimin was right. Taehyung had absolutely no idea what love was like, but from almost a year of hearing Jimin fanboy over Yoongi, he thought that this couldn't be far off. Clicking inside his head like the last piece of a puzzle, Taehyung felt a constricting sensation in his heart. _Okay, okay, calm down_, he reassured himself. So. He had a crush on Jungkook. What did that mean for him? Well… it meant absolutely nothing if Jungkook didn't like him back. Damn it. All Taehyung could do was play their interaction over and over again in his head, changing details here and there, ending it perfectly.

He jumped as he suddenly realised Hoseok snapping his fingers right in front of his face and Jimin in hysterics on the other side of the room. Hoseok grinned and laughed along with Jimin, leaving Taehyung thoroughly confused.

"Found him!" sang Hoseok. Jimin regained himself and walked over to them.

"Jesus, Taehyung, are you okay? You looked like you died for a second and you've been totally out of it for about ten minutes. We fully had a conversation with you before we realised that you weren't actually here. What were you even dreaming about?" he asked. Taehyung blushed and tried to think of a convincing lie. Sure, he was in a safe space here, but he could only just admit this to himself – how was he expected to tell other humans?

"Nothing, I'm just not used to getting three f… three hours of sleep again." He stopped himself cursing when he remembered that Jimin could tell something was up. "I-I guess I just fazed out a bit." Jimin only looked slightly suspicious which, considering how his day was going, Taehyung took as a win.

"Okay then," said Jimin, retrieving his bag, "Well, I'll see you later Hoseok. Taehyung do you want to go to the library? I haven't done the chemistry homework and it's due in for sixth period." Taehyung jumped off the desk and nodded.

"Sure; you can have mine if you want it. Bye, Hoseok," Taehyung waved as he followed Jimin out of the room. Hoseok smiled and waved back before beginning to return the room to its original condition.

They walked down the stairs to the library on the other side of the building. It would be quieter there and somehow, Taehyung still needed more time to think. This time, he knew how he was feeling. But he wanted to explore this. People so often complained about getting crushes and how awful they were, but it didn't seem so bad. His mind was filled with the most beautiful person he had ever seen all the time. They crossed the courtyard and Taehyung saw a familiar face that made his breath catch. _Don't let Jimin see, don't let Jimin see._

"Okay, seriously, Taehyung what is up with you today? I've literally been talking to you since we left the room and you haven't noticed." _Dammit._ Taehyung held the bridge of his nose as he found himself stuck for what to do. Lie to his friend and spend a few more days trying to deal with it by himself? Or tell the truth and get advice after a few days of relentless teasing?

"I'll tell you in the library," was the response he settled on. He couldn't announce his feelings to the corridors: this school had eyes and ears everywhere. The two of them jumped up more stairs leading to the library. The school had so many stairs and corridors and floors and landings that Taehyung felt sorry for the 1st graders trying to learn their way around.

Jimin quickly found an empty table and folded his hands in anticipation. Taehyung sighed, somewhere hoping that he had forgotten by now. He struggled to place the words to his confession but managed to utter,

"Okay, fine, you were right. I have a crush on Jeon Jungkook." Jimin's eyes widened in shock as he processed it. Despite Taehyung very clearly not joking, Jimin let out a suppressed laugh.

"Wait, seriously? I mean I was joking, but…aw, Tae, I'm sorry, that must've been really hard for you to do and I'm really proud of you for admitting that." Jimin grinned and Taehyung returned a diluted smile. "Welcome to the club of 'gay guys with crushes on we-don't-really-know-but-are-probably-straight-because-all-the-hot-guys-are-always-straight guys'. Membership is 10,000 won a month…" Taehyung laughed at Jimin's ability to cheer him up despite feeling so low. While they studied, they talked about the unfairness of love and soon got bored and decided to go somewhere else.

Turning to walk down the library stairs, they passed two others walking the other way. Taehyung accidentally made eye contact with one of them.

Holding Jungkook's gaze for as long as possible, Taehyung desperately tried to commit those eyes to memory. The soft brown orbs locked with his own and Taehyung felt them tear his defences down from the inside out. All too quickly, the moment passed. Beside him, he saw Jimin turn his head to watch them pass, giving Taehyung an excuse to do the same. He hadn't even noticed Yoongi. The pair looked back at each other in disbelief.

"What the hell? When did that happen?" asked Jimin and Taehyung shrugged, equally confused. Neither of them had any idea how that interaction could have occurred, but both of them knew that _that_ combination of people could fuck them both up for the rest of the year.


	6. Chapter 6 - JM

**Things are looking up for Jimin: his best friend has fallen in love and they're finally being recognised.**

**_6 – JM focus_**

"Okay, fine, you were right. I have a crush on Jeon Jungkook." Wow. Jimin was good at this. Despite the pained expression on his friend's face, he couldn't help but feel proud of himself. In all fairness, it wasn't like Taehyung was especially good at hiding secrets. Jimin laughed quietly, not wanting to draw attention to them in the silence of the library.

"Wait, seriously?" Taehyung nodded slowly. "I mean I was joking, but…" On some level, this was true. After Taehyung had so totally rejected Jimin's theories, Jimin decided that he was telling the truth and just started teasing him for the hell of it. But now it wasn't false…

"Aw, Tae, I'm sorry, that must have been really hard for you to do and I'm really proud of you for admitting that." Jimin knew from experience not only how hard it was to come out to someone but to also admit a crush. Even though they were better friends now, that still couldn't have been easy. Taehyung smiled back at him, clearly pleased at the support.

They continued their conversation, intermittently discussing love and chemistry (a weird combination of things for a Tuesday) and soon got bored.

"Where d'you want to go? Music block?" asked Taehyung. They still had fifteen minutes of lunch left and Jimin didn't have any better suggestions. The music block was a separate building to the rest of the school; it had to be quiet for the 'musically talented'. Taehyung said he spoke for all of the 'musically talented' students when he said he couldn't care less about the noise, they were all playing stuff anyway.

Packing up their stuff, Jimin noticed Taehyung start to slip into daydream again. As promised, Jimin woke him up, since they both decided that it could make things spiral as it did with Jimin. They left the library and walked down the stairs. Jimin immediately regretted agreeing to go somewhere else. Yoongi was walking up the stairs towards them with another student. Jimin swallowed hard and tried to look away, but he was drawn back to the older boy as if he was magnetic. They passed and Jimin realised that the boy who was with Yoongi was not one of the basketball team. He turned his head and, when Taehyung did the same, he knew who it was.

There was no way those two were friends. If they were, Jimin and Taehyung would have to flip for staring rights. "What the hell?" Jimin exclaimed almost subconsciously, "When did that happen?" Taehyung shrugged and they both laughed and talked about what they had done to piss off the universe.

Upon entering the music block, they sat themselves down at one of the electric keyboards and Taehyung began to play. Jimin recognised the melody as an American pop song to which he vaguely knew the lyrics. He began to sing along, his voice echoing the intonations and phonics of the artist. Despite not being able to translate all of it, Jimin knew he was singing about love and rejection, waiting for a second chance, everything most pop music was about. But he meant it this time.

Taehyung played the final chord and they sat reflecting on their own feelings. Until someone behind them said,

"Nice. Anyway, you're Park Jimin, right?" Jimin turned around and saw someone he recognised as a third grader leaning against the wall. He had short, silvery hair and strong, handsome features. Jimin would have stood up, but the boy was quite tall and he didn't feel like accentuating the height difference.

"Yeah, that's me," answered Jimin, still slightly afraid of being called out by the older years, despite not being in 1st grade anymore.

"Hoseok found your keys in the classroom and told me to find you," he chucked a set of keys in Jimin's direction and Taehyung caught them and put them in Jimin's pocket for him. "That was beautiful though, your song, I mean. Hoseok didn't tell me you could sing." Jimin felt a little uncomfortable at the compliment and Taehyung nudged him and smiled in encouragement.

"I didn't know Hoseok said anything about me at all… What's your name?" Jimin asked. The boy introduced himself as Kim Namjoon, a name which both of them recognised immediately. Before he started 2nd grade, Namjoon had been offered a full scholarship to an incredibly prestigious private school that specialised in music, but he declined it because he thought the private school system was corrupt. So he carried on at a normal high school instead. In his spare time, he produced songs that were actually really good and he was known as the best freestyle rapper in the whole school. Jimin felt honoured that he had been praised by such a musical genius.

"Oh, yes, of course, well um…thank you. This is my friend, Kim Taehyung." Taehyung waved and Jimin knew he was blushing. Taehyung adored rap music and Jimin had been there the day that Taehyung could rap one of Namjoon's songs fluently. It was a dramatic day. Namjoon's eyes lit up in recognition.

"Oh yeah, you sang in the talent show last year, right?" Taehyung nodded and blushed redder. "You two could duet; I bet that would sound amazing. Anyway, nice meeting you." Jimin and Taehyung faintly mumbled it back and waited until Namjoon had left the room before hi-fiving as quietly as they could. It was true, Jimin like singing, but dancing was always his thing. He had taken a few singing lessons in middle school, but they got too expensive. Jimin was thrilled to be told that his voice was beautiful by someone he didn't even know. Taehyung probably felt the same.

As they made their way back into the main school, an announcement rang out on the tannoy system.

_"Attention, students. Sign-up sheets for house games will be available by the end of the seventh period. Your sports this year are Dance, Basketball, Football and Athletics. Choose wisely and good luck!"_

House games. Right at the start of the year as a team-building exercise and a way for 1st graders to learn their place in the school. Taehyung and Jimin grinned at each other. This was always fun.

The school was divided into four houses and, due to the lack of imagination from the prefects, they were named after colours: Green, Blue, Purple and Orange. Jimin and Taehyung were in different houses and house competitions always sparked rivalry, no matter how petty the competition was. Jimin was an Orange (along with Hoseok) and Taehyung was a Purple. The standard view on the houses was: Green wins everything, Blue is competitive and often violent, Purple is always top three, never first but has the most fun and Orange has incredible team spirit.

The year before, Jimin had gone for Dance and won his category. Hoseok had also won his round and they met at the prizegiving. It had been a really fun experience and Jimin couldn't wait to do it again. This time, though, he remembered that all of the events have most of the school as spectators. Last year, that was exciting and Jimin loved it, but last year he didn't have a crush. Sure, he didn't have to watch Yoongi play and even if Yoongi watched the Dance events, he wouldn't pay attention but it still made Jimin more nervous about performing. He'd just have to wait and see.

**(excuse my terrible chapter summaries but I hate just heading straight into stories)**


	7. Chapter 7 - JK

_**(Low key given up on chapter summaries sorry oh well now it's a mystery)**_

**_7 – JK focus_**

_"Attention, students. Sign-up sheets for house games will be available by the end of the seventh period. Your sports this year are Dance, Basketball, Football and Athletics. Choose wisely and good luck!"_

Easy choice: athletics. Jungkook had never played basketball before and he loathed football. He could dance pretty well, but the people who went for dance were either girls, professionals, or both and Jungkook didn't particularly want to pit himself against any of those categories. Besides, he could run better than he could walk. He'd have to practice, though; he didn't know who he was up against.

Jungkook had found out on the first day that he was in the Purple house. He didn't quite know why that mattered, but other people in his house seemed nice, so he just went with it. House games were only a few weeks away so Jungkook didn't have a lot of time to practice, but he did whatever he could. The Wednesday rolled around and everyone already seemed thrilled to be having a day off lessons, despite only being back for four and a half weeks.

The day was simple enough: full school assembly followed by house assembly, then Football, then Dance, then Basketball, then Athletics. The fact that Jungkook's event was last didn't help his nerves, but he knew that adrenaline makes you faster, so he didn't entirely mind.

A shrill bell reverberated around the school, signalling for assembly. Hundreds of unenthusiastic boys and girls flooded the corridor and filed slowly into the hall. Chairs squeaked and voices whispered in the dark. Assembly was always so unnecessarily dramatic. The stage lit up suddenly and everyone cringed at the sudden brightness. Smiling far too positively for a Wednesday morning, the head boy and girl walked out onto the platform.

Kim Seokjin and Kim Jisoo; not related or dating, but really good friends and the star pupils of the school. A more charismatic pair of students didn't exist anywhere in the world. Seokjin's assemblies were the funniest performances the school got to see and Jisoo had an imagination that brightened up mornings with tangents about why you shouldn't feed ducks bread or about the history of the machete. They walked towards each other and played about eleven rounds of Rock, Paper, Scissors, confusing but thoroughly amusing their audience. By the end of their performance, Seokjin raised his hands in victory and sat down smugly, leaving Jisoo to administer the assembly.

It was just an introduction to house games that year and Jungkook knew most of it anyway from his classmates or from Yoongi. They didn't really talk much but Yoongi would occasionally give him advice and Jungkook hadn't been beaten up yet. Jungkook still liked talking to him, despite his sultry manner.

The locations for house assembly were displayed and Jungkook was relieved to see that Purple stayed in the hall and he didn't have to move. He watched as three-quarters of the school filtered out, leaving him alone in his row of seats. He got up and moved forward a row so as not to look completely alone. Recognising the hair of the person directly in front of him, Jungkook flushed and silently thanked every God he could think of that they had put him in the same house as Kim Taehyung.

Jungkook didn't know what it was. Okay, that was a lie, he knew exactly what it was. It was a crush. It had all come on rather fast but as much as he tried to put it down to hormones or stress, the orange-haired boy invaded his mind and penetrated his thoughts at the worst times: before sleep, during lessons, times where he needed to concentrate and Taehyung wouldn't let him. He could deal with it, though. He'd done it before, he could do it again.

Each sport was laid out in detail and Jungkook wasn't really listening. When the house captain asked who was doing athletics, Taehyung raised his hand as well, which surprised Jungkook. He would've betted on Taehyung being a dancer over a runner. The races were allocated and Jungkook went straight for the 400m. Short, but not quite a sprint. The races were basically tournaments – the bottom two of each race of six were eliminated and the heats continued into the final six. The students weren't separated by age or ability, just by their house. It was a sort of accelerated survival of the fittest: if you aren't fast enough, you get eliminated. Simple as that.

Taehyung wasn't in his race, so that was one thing. It meant Jungkook could focus on himself and himself alone. The house captain finished her speech.

"Remember, it doesn't matter if we don't win, just have fun out there and then at least we've beaten the Blues. Make memories and, 1st graders, make friends. Borasaek!" she shouted and the rest of the hall echoed back.

The bell clanged for the second time that morning. Everyone stood and prepared to make their way to the football pitch for the tournament. Jungkook decided not to go. Football was boring and pointless and the pitch would be way too crowded. He was just deciding where to go when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned around.

"Hi, Jungkook!" It was Taehyung. Actually speaking to him. Jungkook smiled and reddened involuntarily. "I've been meaning to catch up with you, you know, just to see how you're finding this hellhole," Taehyung gestured wildly to their surroundings and Jungkook laughed.

"Oh, it's not too bad. Four hours of sleep a night isn't helping anything, though; I'm just not used to it." Taehyung looked mildly impressed.

"Whoa, four hours? I get three on a good night." _Well, you look hella good on it, _thought Jungkook, once again running his gaze across Taehyung's perfect visage. Taehyung continued, "So, you're doing the 400 metres? I can't do anything shorter than 800. I've got stamina, not speed." _Noted._ Jungkook was surprised at his own mind. He pushed his imagination away and replied,

"If anything, I'd have put you down as a dancer. I mean, you've got the frame for it and I bet you're pretty flexible." _Slow down, Kook._ Taehyung grinned.

"No, not me. Jimin's the dancer. I have no idea where he finds the time for it, but he's incredible at it. And he can sing, too. I keep telling him he should audition for something, but he won't listen." Jungkook's mood dampened slightly. Yoongi said they weren't dating, but from the way Taehyung was talking, it sounded like he wanted them to be. Jungkook cleared his throat and changed the subject.

"So, are you going to watch the football?" Taehyung looked at him with a disgusted expression on his face.

"Ew, no. Football is possibly the worst sport ever invented, aside from maybe basketball, but don't ever tell Jimin I said that; he'd go mental. Actually, do you want to go watch him rehearse? His performance is first in his event and he's a bit nervous so I told him I'd give him an audience. Wanna come?" Jungkook wanted to say yes immediately but pretended to think about it for a moment before answering.

Taehyung grabbed his wrist to lead him up the stairs and Jungkook's heart raced at the contact, just as it had done the first time. He allowed Taehyung to pull him forwards to wherever they were going and just focused on not tripping over the steps. Taehyung let go of his arm just before he opened the door to the top classroom and Jungkook felt his wrist tingle at the loss of closeness. He followed Taehyung into the classroom.

Jimin and another boy whom Jungkook vaguely recognised were talking in the middle of the room, which had been cleared of chairs. They both smiled when they saw Taehyung. Taehyung smiled back widely.

"Hey! I brought Jungkook with me, I hope you don't mind," he said and Jimin looked at him with a look that Jungkook couldn't quite decipher. The other boy beamed at Jungkook and introduced himself.

"Hi! I'm Hoseok, I'm in 3rd grade, but I dance with Jimin. It's nice to meet you!" This might be the most genuinely happy person Jungkook had ever met, so he smiled politely and returned the sentiment. Jimin clapped his hands together.

"So, Hoseok, should we get started? You two can sit over there," he said, ushering Jungkook and Taehyung to the desks at the side of the room. Taehyung jumped and sat on the table. Jungkook copied.

Hoseok pressed play on the stereo and a song started to play that Jungkook knew. It was nearly a year old and it was a little bit generic – it was about the singer loving someone that they couldn't have, but they were going to keep loving anyway despite all of the hardships, etc. Jimin danced with incredible passion as if he was at one with the music. Jungkook wondered who he was dancing for.


	8. Chapter 8 - V

**(heads up: 'football'=soccer, sorry for my britishishness)  
(still a trash sport though)**

**_8 – V focus_**

The sign-up sheets were passed around and Taehyung saw that he was the first person to sign up for the 1500m. Everyone complained about it so emphatically. It was a long distance race, not an English assessment. He passed it to the person behind him and was momentarily shocked into stone when he saw Jungkook sitting there. Of all the houses. Granted, there were only four of them, but it was still a relatively small possibility. Taehyung regained conscious thought and smiled, handing Jungkook the pen and paper. He watched him sign his name instantly next to the 400m slot and pass it on.

Taehyung sat back and waited for the bell. He couldn't tell if he was happy or annoyed at Jungkook being in his house, but apparently, that was normal, if Jimin was anything to go by. Jimin had been really supportive about this, despite the initial 'I told you so' phase. It was actually really useful to have a friend like him. There was a difference, though: Taehyung was mildly acquainted with Jungkook, while Yoongi had only ever acknowledged them about once. That meant he would have to occasionally hold a conversation with Jungkook without breaking down entirely. The bell rang loudly and everyone got up to walk out the doors at the back of the hall. _Well_, Taehyung thought, _better get some practice_.

Very bravely, Taehyung caught up to Jungkook and put his hand on the younger boy's shoulder. As normally as he could, he said, "Hi, Jungkook!" Jungkook turned around and smiled. So far so good. "I've been meaning to catch up with you, you know, just to see how you're finding this hellhole." Taehyung waved his arms at the dilapidated corridors and Jungkook laughed. It was a beautiful, addictive sound and Taehyung so wanted to hear it again, but it was replaced by something arguably better.

"Oh, it's not too bad. Four hours of sleep a night isn't helping anything, though; I'm just not used to it." If this was Jungkook on four hours of sleep, Taehyung was sure that seven hours would make him look like a god. He tried not to say that out loud, however.

"Whoa, four hours? I get three on a good night." Jungkook looked at him and Taehyung felt mildly self-conscious – as if he was being assessed. Trying not to continue the conversation in this vein, he said, "So, you're doing the 400 metres? I can't do anything shorter than 800. I've got stamina, not speed." Jungkook raised his eyebrow and replied,

"If anything, I'd have put you down as a dancer. I mean, you've got the frame for it and I bet you're pretty flexible." Taehyung blushed at the compliment as the boy scanned his body and he grinned at the novelty of being called a dancer.

"No, not me. Jimin's the dancer. I have no idea where he finds the time for it, but he's incredible at it. And he can sing, too. I keep telling him he should audition for something, but he won't listen." Jungkook didn't reply immediately and Taehyung felt panic, then scolded himself for being so desperate for the love of a first grader.

"So, are you going to watch the football?" Taehyung rolled his eyes but stopped when he worried he might come across as dismissive.

"Ew, no. Football is possibly the worst sport ever invented, aside from maybe basketball, but don't ever tell Jimin I said that; he'd go mental." Taehyung began to worry that he was talking about Jimin too much, but at this point, that might work. He knew he was starting to overthink things and having Jimin as support couldn't hurt, right?

"Actually, do you want to go watch him rehearse? His performance is first in his event and he's a bit nervous so I told him I'd give him an audience. Wanna come?" Jungkook thought about this request for a moment before accepting it cheerfully. Taehyung smiled and instinctively grabbed Jungkook's wrist to direct him up the stairs. He was about to apologise and let go, but seeing as Jungkook didn't object, Taehyung decided he could get away with it until they got to the top.

He opened the door, dropping Jungkook's arm, and entered the room. Jimin and Hoseok smiled at him and then acknowledged Jungkook. Before they could ask, Taehyung said, "Hey! I brought Jungkook with me, I hope you don't mind," and hoped there would be no further questions. Jimin looked at him and communicated a whole speech to him with his eyes only. The jist of it was: _Really? _Taehyung shrugged and grinned, and Jimin grinned back. Jimin clapped once and said,

"So, Hoseok, should we get started? You two can sit over there," Taehyung skipped to the back and hopped on one of the tables. Jungkook sat next to him. Hoseok started the music and the two began to dance. It was incredibly emotional and Taehyung recognised the song as one that Jimin had cried at before because he connected with it so strongly. The love that he couldn't help. Taehyung found himself being carried away by the words and the movement and lost himself in the passion of the performance.

The music ended and Hoseok and Jimin sat back to back, breathing heavily. They reanimated simultaneously and Taehyung and Jungkook gave them a very well deserved round of applause. Jimin looked at his audience and asked, "Well, what did you think?" Taehyung gave as much support as he was physically able.

"Jiminie, you were amazing! If you two do half that in the real thing, you've won for sure. I love the song choice, by the way, it really fits the choreography." Jimin and Hoseok flushed with pride and looked at Jungkook. Jungkook looked awe-struck.

"It was beautiful! No, really, it was stunning, I mean, I've never seen anything like it. It was so passionate and expressive and you weren't just dancing, you were acting, too. I loved it!" Hoseok beamed in appreciation and hugged Jimin. Taehyung listened to the admiration in Jungkook's voice and wished he could dance as well as Jimin.

They stayed in the classroom for the next two hours, Jimin and Hoseok practising (occasionally) and Taehyung getting to know Jungkook a little bit better. Taehyung felt sorry for him. He had been taken from his friends and put in a city he neither knew nor liked and didn't even get a say in where he lived. When Taehyung asked if he was making friends easily, Jungkook replied,

"Yeah, I guess. I just sort of float around and hang out with whoever, most of the time. There's also a 3rd grader I sometimes talk to, Min Yoongi, but he's-" Jimin interrupted him by choking on a cookie and Taehyung shot daggers at him. Jimin went red and Taehyung understood why he choked. Jimin looked at Jungkook and said,

"Sorry, I just breathed weirdly. Anyway, what were you saying about Min Yoongi?" Taehyung smiled. _Smooth, Jimin, hella smooth. _Jungkook continued,

"He knows a lot about the people here and he just tells me how not to get beat up. But he's kinda quiet and besides, he's way older than me and he's got better things to do than mentor a 1st grader." Taehyung smirked and couldn't think of anything better to do than to mentor Jungkook. Hoseok, who had previously been in his own world, suddenly piped up.

"Can you sing, Jungkook?" Jungkook looked taken aback by the question and stammered slightly. Hoseok explained, "Because everyone knows Taehyung has the voice of an angel and I have confirmed sources and experience that say Jimin can definitely sing. What about you?" Jungkook looked a little bit uncomfortable and Taehyung anticipated what he knew would come next, whatever Jungkook's answer was.

"I-I mean, I don't really know, I've never really thought about it before…" As much as Taehyung wanted to relieve the pressure on the boy's shoulders at that moment, he also really wanted to hear him sing. He wanted to make this as easy as possible for him, so he suggested,

"If you're going to make him sing, at least let him choose the song." Jimin and Hoseok found this reasonable and Jungkook started to scroll through his phone. He walked over to the speaker without showing anyone and connected his phone. The intro played and Jungkook stood, his pretty hands fidgeting nervously. Jungkook began to sing.

Jungkook made Taehyung believe in angels. His voice started off quietly and smoothly, but he soon gained a little more confidence and let his vocals be heard. It was crisp and utterly beautiful. Jungkook sang in a way that could rival Orpheus himself. And it absolutely broke Taehyung. He completely immersed himself in the music, drowning himself in the most incredible sound he had ever heard. What surprised Taehyung was that the lyrics were in English. As he was swept along with the melody, he realised that he recognised the song. It was the same one that he and Jimin had been playing in the music block a few weeks before. Taehyung desperately tried to savour each note as it escaped Jungkook's lips, each beautifully controlled vibration from his throat, but the song ended and Jungkook stopped singing.


	9. Chapter 9 - JM

**_9 – JM focus_**

Jeon Jungkook was one of the best singers Jimin had ever heard. Sure, he was shy at first, but as he continued, Jimin was certain he was beginning to enjoy himself. He actually couldn't believe that Jungkook didn't know he could sing. It seemed actually impossible that he didn't appreciate his own angelic voice. Jimin looked over at Taehyung and, sure enough, he looked absolutely smitten. Jimin thought he could tease him about it afterwards because he also really wanted to hear the rest of the song.

Jungkook sang the final line. His three audience members sat silently for a moment, drinking in the last few notes, then clapped and cheered emphatically. Jungkook shifted his weight from foot to foot and reddened profusely. The applause died down and Taehyung stammered,

"I-I mean…I actually don't know what to say. That was so incredible! How did you not know you can sing?" Jungkook looked a mixture of intense embarrassment and shining pride.

"Well, I don't like singing in front of people, I just get really self-conscious about it and I don't know why. My family are the only ones that ever hear it and they just complain about it all the time. But I guess if you guys liked it…" Jungkook smiled at Taehyung and Taehyung smiled back. Jimin watched the beautiful moment get obliterated by the resounding of the bell that still always made Jimin jump.

There was a twenty-minute break before the dance events started, but the four of them went to the indoor courts (where it was being held) early. Jimin and Hoseok went into the changing rooms while Jungkook and Taehyung went to sit in the balcony seats as the rest of the school arrived. Jimin felt so nervous about this and didn't really know why. He was usually so good at performing in front of people. He would have to ignore his nerves and just dance like he usually did.

Around ten minutes later, the rest of the competitors had arrived and were lined up by their house along the back of the hall. The Orange house was performing first and, although Jimin was slightly worried about some of the 1st graders in his performance, he was majorly distracted by a face he saw in the crowd.

Jimin tried to ignore him. He couldn't. Yoongi seemed to be doing a fantastic job of ignoring him, though. The next thing Jimin knew, Seokjin was introducing their performance and wishing them good luck. They all walked out into the performance space and assumed their starting positions. The music began to play.


	10. Chapter 10 - YG

**_10 – YG perspective_**

He danced like nothing I had ever seen. It was fiery and stunning. I couldn't take my eyes off him no matter how hard I tried. I suddenly didn't care about keeping up appearances, or taking the piss out of the 1st graders with my friends; I only cared about him. I didn't want to ignore it anymore. I knew my dad would kill me, but I wanted more than the acceptance of my parents. I wanted Park Jimin to be mine.


	11. Chapter 11 - JM

**_11 – JM focus_**

The music ended and cheers erupted from the few hundred spectators. Jimin was incredibly out of breath, but he didn't care. He had done it and not messed it up. He searched for Yoongi's face in the crowd, but he wasn't there. _Of course he isn't, he has better things to do than watch you dance_, thought Jimin as Hoseok helped him to his feet. They walked back to the changing room.

Hoseok, everyone's little ball of sunshine, was spouting off positive messages and congratulating the exhausted performers. Jimin stayed for a while, chatting, before wandering off to find Taehyung and Jungkook.

He walked up to the balcony seats and spotted Taehyung's hair almost immediately. He walked over to them and saw that the two were intently studying a scrap of orange-coloured paper. When he approached them, they didn't say anything, they just looked befuddled and handed him the paper. Jimin was confused and looked at the paper. It read: _Jimin, I need u._

Jimin was thoroughly perplexed and looked up at Taehyung. Taehyung looked at Jungkook and back at Jimin and raised his hands.

"I swear neither of us wrote that; I just found it in my pocket after your performance and I have no idea how it got there." Jimin didn't know whether to laugh or ignore it or track the handwriting through every person in the audience. He decided on the former.

"No, Tae, it's fine, I believe you. That's so weird. Do either of you recognise the handwriting?" he giggled and the other two followed his lead. In all honesty, Jimin was just putting on a brave face. He couldn't imagine anyone needing him or even wanting him except for Taehyung, and he had other people on his mind. Jimin's rationality put it down to just a practical joke, but even that didn't make sense – they didn't get to see the outcome. Somewhere, in a shadowy corner of his mind, he hoped it was Yoongi. He knew it wouldn't be, but he couldn't help but dream.

The other performances were good. Really good. Jimin had been confident in their performance before, but now he was sat on the edge of his seat, anticipating the ranks. Seokjin stood up after the final dance and clapped loudly to get everyone's attention. Despite being the head boy, he still looked faintly amused that it worked.

"Thank you! The results are in! Do you want to know who won?" Everyone cheered. "Too bad, I'm starting with last place." _Seokjin is weird, _Jimin thought. "In 4th place is…" he over-accentuated the dramatic pause before yelling, "Blue!" Jimin jumped as about four girls sitting near them screeched and pouted very loudly. "In third place…..Purple!" The Purple house cheered ecstatically and was a lot more accepting of their achievement. "In second place…" The pause seemed to last forever and Jimin nearly fell off his seat, "Green!" Half the crowd erupted and Seokjin announcing the winner was barely audible over the celebration. Taehyung and Jungkook were shaking Jimin by his shoulders and shouting congratulations in his ear.

Once more, the bell rang and the school was sent out to lunch. Jimin and Taehyung suggested the music block, but Jungkook said he had something to do and left them to go and do whatever that was. In a way, Jimin was slightly disappointed because Jungkook was fun to have around, even if he was a little shy. It was nice to have Taehyung back to himself, though. They walked to the music block and Jimin was laughing at Taehyung for the difference in his manner. Taehyung pouted,

"Shut up! I can't help it, okay? You know for a fact you were like that too and Min Yoongi didn't even come anywhere near us." Jimin hit Taehyung on the arm but smiled because he knew the kid was right. They sat down at one of the pianos and Taehyung started to play again. Jimin didn't recognise the tune, but it was very pretty. Taehyung only played for a few bars until he noticed Jimin watching. Jimin smiled.

"What was that? It was really nice; did you write it?" Taehyung nodded and answered,

"Yeah, I can't play well, though. I was just bored one day and thought I'd write something. It's not perfect or long or elaborate but I still like it." He looked up at Jimin who replied,

"I like it, too."

They sat and talked about nothing in particular and Jimin was so thankful that they were friends. This was someone with whom he could talk about the deepest, darkest thoughts his mind and someone that he could argue about Pokemon with. Jimin couldn't think of a better friend than that.

Basketball was the next event and Jimin was both excited and dreading it. On the one hand, he would see Min Yoongi but on the other hand, he would see Min Yoongi. He wasn't even sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing anymore. Maybe on some level, Jimin wanted the boy to notice him there – he was just so tired of being ignored by him. They walked back across and hoped they'd run into Jungkook but didn't. They wondered where he could have gone that was so important but they couldn't find him in the sports hall either.

The hall slowly filled up with people again and the event was close to starting before Jungkook joined them again. Taehyung reverted back into his strange 'Jungkook' persona and Jimin had to suppress a laugh.

The first game was Blue versus Green. Jimin knew that Yoongi was Blue, but as he scanned the court, he failed to find him. Jimin frowned. He was sure that Yoongi was doing basketball; he had seen him practising that morning.

The whistle blew without any introduction from the captains and everyone set off immediately. It was actually a thrilling first half. By the end of the first half, the scores were tied and things seemed like they were heating up between the players.

Jimin was still curious about the lack of Yoongi, so he asked (very casually), "Jungkook, did Min Yoongi say he was playing basketball today? He's not here." Jungkook seemed slightly caught off guard by the question but answered it anyway.

"Um, yeah, he was just feeling a bit ill at lunch so he said he'd only play in the second half. Look, there he is now," Jungkook pointed down to the courts and, as Jimin took in the information, he noticed that Yoongi was staying away from everyone and staring at the floor, drinking water. It was still strange in Jimin's mind that Jungkook was acquainted with Yoongi so well. The whistle blew again and Yoongi chucked his water bottle to the side of the court and jogged into position.

Jimin couldn't believe that Yoongi was ill; he played spectacularly and never missed a shot. By the end of the match, the Blues were miles ahead and could easily win by doing nothing at all, but it seemed that they had some sort of vendetta against the opposing side. They played as if it was life or death until the last second. Yoongi didn't join in the celebrations. He walked off and Jimin didn't know where.


	12. Chapter 12 - JK

**_12 – JK focus_**

When Jimin left to go and change with Hoseok, it was just Jungkook and Taehyung in the balcony seats. The hall was bigger than Jungkook had realised. He was thrilled with how the day had gone so far. He was making better friends with Taehyung and Jimin who were, admittedly, better company than Yoongi. Taehyung was so nice to him, even about his voice, which Jungkook was certain wasn't that good.

People slowly started to drift in from the break and it became more difficult to talk to Taehyung alone. On some level, Jungkook didn't want to talk – he wanted to just sit with Taehyung and never leave. The hall filled up and Seokjin jumped out into the performance space. Jungkook really liked Seokjin because he was a 3rd grader that actually cared about his existence and it wasn't like there was an abundance of them.

He introduced the performers and Jimin filed onto the stage with the others. Taehyung cheered loudly and Jungkook followed. The music began to play. If anything, it was more beautiful with more people performing. As far as Jungkook could tell, nobody got anything wrong, but then again he was only watching Jimin and Hoseok and a few of his classmates. When it finished, Hoseok was somehow still full of energy and was encouraging everyone to get up and be positive. Jungkook liked that about him, his glittering spirit seeming to leap out and help everyone it could find.

Jungkook looked over at Taehyung who looked really quite confused. Jungkook asked what was wrong and Taehyung showed him a note that had been scribbled on a bit of orange paper. It read: _Jimin, I need u_. Jungkook's heart fell. He was about to excuse himself when Taehyung asked,

"I just found this in my pocket. Did you write it?" Jungkook flushed with relief and shook his head. "Oh, well, do you recognise the handwriting?" Jungkook nearly shook his head again before realising that the writing was vaguely familiar. But it couldn't be…

"No, I don't think so. Gosh, that's really strange, though," he said and Taehyung nodded in agreement. Jimin walked up behind them and Taehyung showed him the paper. Jimin just laughed. Taehyung felt the need to confirm its anonymity and Jimin instantly believed him. Jungkook admired that about their friendship.

The other performances were beautiful but they had none of the passion. The points were added up and Jungkook cheered for Jimin as if he were part of his own house or as if they were old friends. Maybe it didn't matter who he was, just that Jungkook was there to provide support. The excitement of the event had left Taehyung flushed and Jungkook found that strangely attractive. He almost didn't hear them when they suggested going to the music block. Jungkook was very close to saying yes before remembering the note.

"No thank you, I can't, I've got something I need to do," and he wandered off to the outdoor courts.

It was getting cold at this time of year and the thin uniform didn't do much to keep Jungkook warm. He heard the sound of rubber on concrete and made his way over to the end court. He opened the stiff metal gate and walked onto the court.

"Yoongi?" He had his earphones in. "Min Yoongi!" Yoongi turned to acknowledge Jungkook and paused his music.

"What?" Jungkook still felt faintly nervous around Yoongi: he was two years older than him and was part of the popular crowd, even if he didn't want to be. Yoongi was waiting for an answer.

"Can I ask you something?" Yoongi sighed, dropped the ball and approached Jungkook.

"Fine." Yoongi didn't like being disturbed while he was practising, but Jungkook was a naturally curious child and felt that this was a pressing matter.

"What do you actually know about Park Jimin?" Yoongi slumped against the outer cage and invited Jungkook to join him.

"He's in 2nd grade. His best friend is Kim Taehyung and they take English together. He dances at a semi-professional level with Hoseok from my form. His favourite sport is basketball, but he can't play it to save his life." Yoongi was speaking quietly and not making eye contact with Jungkook. "I've seen you hanging around him. Why do you want to know?" Jungkook tried to think of a valid answer.

"Well, I just wondered what you thought of him. You do seem to know a lot about him and he seemed to be kind of interested in you earlier…" Yoongi chuckled. "What?" Yoongi looked up.

"I don't know you very well, Jungkook, but that is very obviously bullshit. Start again and don't lie to me." Jungkook had suddenly lost faith in his entire existence, but he couldn't escape now.

"Taehyung found a note in his pocket and I thought you might have put it there," he muttered. Yoongi's dark eyes flashed menacingly and Jungkook was very afraid that he might get hurt, badly. Yoongi lowered his head and stared silently at the floor. Jungkook was still afraid but he asked, "Yoongi? Are you okay? What's g- "

"Not a word of this to anyone, do you understand?" Yoongi interrupted, still not making eye contact. "I asked you a question, Jeon." Jungkook stuttered and answered,

"Yes, I promise, I won't say anything." Yoongi gathered his things and stood up. He kicked the cage violently and suddenly, then turned towards Jungkook looking oddly pale.

"I-I won't be playing the first half of my match, t-tell someone that, would you?" He walked away, leaving Jungkook alone on the court. Jungkook suddenly realised what Yoongi had meant when he said that Lee Seohyun wasn't his type.

Jungkook felt strangely threatened and didn't know what to do. He thought he should tell someone but he knew he couldn't; Yoongi was powerful. He knew that. Yet he didn't seem angry, aside from his initial reaction. Did he seem …ashamed? Jungkook could understand why. He had heard Yoongi's teammates spitting out homophobic slurs. Jungkook had thought that he had it bad liking someone who didn't like him back, but Yoongi liked someone he wasn't even _allowed_ to like. No one was going to stop Jungkook liking Taehyung (no one could, in his opinion) but it could ruin Yoongi. Jungkook wouldn't tell. He couldn't.

Jungkook wasn't used to drama like this and went to the bathroom to calm down a bit. One of the stall doors was off its hinges and Jungkook thought back to Yoongi kicking the fence. He didn't know where Yoongi had walked off to, but he was just going to have to trust that he'd come back.

Jungkook stayed out of the way for the remainder of the break, not wanting to accidentally run into Yoongi. He needn't have worried, as it turned out no one had seen him since the start of lunch. Jungkook carefully approached one of the members of the basketball team and quietly relayed Yoongi's message to them. They barely acknowledged him, but the knowledge that their shooting guard was off was enough to spark quite a loud argument, from which Jungkook quickly moved away.

Upon realising the time, Jungkook ran back over to the indoor courts to join Jimin and Taehyung upstairs. They asked where he had been and he replied as vaguely as he could. The whistle blew and, sure enough, no Min Yoongi. Jungkook was beginning to get worried and he wasn't the only one. When the half time whistle blew, Jimin asked,

"Jungkook, did Min Yoongi say he was playing basketball today? He's not here." Jungkook swallowed nervously.

"Um, yeah, he was just feeling a bit ill at lunch so he said he'd only play in the second half." A glimpse of something amazing downstairs made Jungkook's heart leap in relief. "Look, there he is now." He pointed to a reclusive, pensive looking Yoongi who, thankfully, did not look up at them.

He practically fought against the opposing team in the second half and Jungkook could tell that he wasn't giving up for anything, no matter how exhausted his teammates were. The final whistle blew and Yoongi didn't congratulate his own team or his competition – he just walked away. Jungkook felt guilty. If he hadn't said anything, Yoongi might be okay; but it was too late to change that now.


	13. Chapter 13 - V

**_13 – V focus_**

2:30 pm. Time for athletics. Taehyung had been dreading this at the start of the day but now, he couldn't wait. More time spent with Jeon Jungkook? Yes, please. Taehyung had gotten to know Jungkook better and knew he was a really cool person to hang around with. He was beginning to get paranoid, however, that Jungkook would somehow discover his secret, but there was time to worry about that later.

They were sitting and talking by the side of the track during the sprint events but it was so much harder without Jimin around. Taehyung was fine when he felt like he had a support system with him, but this time, he was on his own. He thanked God there was something they could distract themselves with to fill the silences that were becoming slightly more common between them. Jungkook didn't look as comfortable when it was just Taehyung and Taehyung wondered if he had done something wrong. He hadn't left yet, though.

The call for the 400m rang out and Jungkook stood up. Taehyung stayed, anxiously tearing at the grass and said,

"Good luck!" Jungkook turned around and smiled before jogging over to the start line. Taehyung watched from a distance as they were all divided into two groups of six – three participants from each house. Taehyung felt his heart lurch in nervous excitement for the boy as he took his place on the start line. The gun went off with a loud crack and Taehyung's nerves dissipated completely.

Jungkook was fast._ Really _fast. He finished miles ahead of everyone else and had barely broken a sweat in the process. Taehyung watched in awe. It had taken him one minute exactly to complete two circuits of their track and Taehyung was astounded. Was there anything this kid couldn't do? The second heat lined up but Taehyung wasn't watching. None of them could compete with Jungkook.

After what seemed like forever, Jungkook was back on the start line and ready to go. A gasp went up in the crowd as someone made a false start. _Idiot_. It was Jungkook. _It's just nerves, you're okay, Jungkook. _The gun went off for real and the runners jumped off the starting block and ran like fire. Taehyung was so hypnotised that he almost missed what happened next.

It happened in slow motion. Jungkook was neck and neck with another racer and Taehyung could see the strain it was putting on both of them as they shot past. When they were about 50 metres or so past where Taehyung was sitting, Jungkook tripped and fell. Taehyung reacted instantly, like an instinctual urge pushing him onto his feet and making him run. The track was clear by this point, so Taehyung sprinted into Jungkook's lane and slid to his knees beside him.

"Jungkook?! Are you okay? Sit up for me, can you?" Taehyung held Jungkook's hand, still only acting on instinct and concern, while the injured boy groaned and rolled into a sitting position. Jungkook was covered in dirt and his knee was bleeding, badly. The dark liquid percolated from a, thankfully, relatively shallow gash and was smeared all over his leg and hands. Taehyung wasn't afraid of blood. Jungkook's blood, however, panicked him severely. Only the feeling of Jungkook's hand in his kept him calm enough to speak normally.

"Jungkook? Do you think you can stand up for me?" Jungkook grimaced but nodded slowly. Taehyung carefully helped him to his feet, treating him like a delicate, wounded animal. They limped to the side of the track where they were joined by about nine members of staff, one of whom being the invigilator. He looked at Jungkook's leg, which was webbed with streams of blood and dirt, and said,

"I'm sorry, Jeon, we can't let you race like this, I'm afraid you're out of the final heat." Jungkook looked panicked and heartbroken. A fresh wave of sadness washed through Taehyung as he looked on. Jungkook cleared his throat.

"Please, sir, can't someone take my place? I really don't want to let down my house." The invigilator pondered this for a second and had barely nodded before Jungkook asked, "Taehyung? Would you run for me?" This caught Taehyung by surprise.

"Me? I'm a distance runner; I can't sprint to save my life," he argued, and Jungkook looked back at him with a doubting expression.

"Are you kidding? After I fell you were next to me in about 6 seconds flat and besides, I can rope Seokjin into running in place of you. He holds the school record for the 1500m and he's in our house. Please, Taehyung?" Taehyung took one look at Jungkook's pleading eyes and knew that he would never be able to say no to them. Taehyung sighed,

"Fine. Yes, of course, I'll run for you, Jungkook. I'm nowhere near as fast as you, but I'll give it my best shot. Now go clean up your leg before it gets infected, okay?" Jungkook's eyes lit up and he hugged Taehyung so warmly that he didn't want to let go. But the medics pulled him away and Taehyung was called to the start line.

What had he been thinking? When Taehyung had said he wasn't a sprinter, he meant it. The whole thing with Jungkook was just a fluke. Maybe the knowledge that Jungkook was counting on him was enough to make him faster. Taehyung very severely hoped so.

The other runners lined up. The gun went off and Taehyung ran. The others were fast. It put things into perspective about how fast Jungkook really was. But Taehyung could feel himself slowing down. That was when he saw the boy, with whom Jungkook had been tied, make an attempt to trip up one of the other racers. So he had tripped Jungkook. And Jungkook hadn't said anything. Sure he was probably older, but that pissed Taehyung off more than anything; he found energy from some hidden place and put on a sudden burst of speed. He was surprised at his own strength and overtook three other racers with ease. He had to push himself further. He had to. For Jungkook. But his body wouldn't let him.

He crossed the finish line in third place and dropped to his knees in extreme fatigue. Despite this, he remembered his motive and approached his nemesis, hitting him hard on the shoulder. The student turned around to face a fuming Taehyung.

"You tripped my friend. You _hurt _him," Taehyung didn't know where this threatening side of him came from, but he didn't object to it. The boy smiled innocently. Taehyung recognised him as a 1st grader and knew he was about to teach this cocky son-of-a-bitch a very important lesson: don't fuck with Kim Taehyung.

"Me?" the boy asked, still smiling, "But I haven't done anything." There was an evil glint in his eyes that Taehyung was going to enjoy extinguishing.

"Listen here, you little prick, I can make your life a living hell for the next two years and trust me, I'm really not a person you want to have against you," Taehyung knew that was a lie, but he was liking the power stance, "so unless you want to go crying for your parents to walk you home, unless you want to lose all of your little friends in a day, unless you want to finish this semester with the wrong number of fucking teeth," the boy looked sufficiently guilty and Taehyung grinned, "you're going to apologise to Jungkook and stay the fuck away from me. Got it?" The boy nodded silently and Taehyung patted him on the head. "Good boy." He walked away feeling slightly remorseful, but someone was going to have to teach him a lesson sooner or later.

Taehyung smiled, feeling that justice had been done.


	14. Chapter 14 - JH

**_14 – JH focus_**

Everyone in this school must have been completely blind. Hoseok deemed it absolutely impossible that everyone was so oblivious to what was going on.

The worst were Taehyung and Jungkook. They were crushing on each other so much it hurt. Long periods of eye contact and severe blushing were enough to tell Hoseok that. And yet, neither seemed to realise it. Even Jimin was ignorant to Jungkook's side of it and Hoseok really did not understand why.

Jimin had told him that he had a crush on Min Yoongi, which was, admittedly, a surprise. Hoseok gave kudos to the boy for managing it so well around him, but now he knew, Hoseok saw it clearly. What Jimin didn't know was that Yoongi liked him back. Yoongi hadn't told Hoseok this, but it seemed pretty obvious: the abrupt changes of the subject around him, the almost painful aversion of eye contact, the lack of interest he had in any part of Hoseok's life aside from dance. It was a little bit funny and a little bit sad at the same time.

Hoseok had always been a bit of a matchmaker. He saw relationships and connections that everyone else seemed to ignore. Soulmates, life partners and kindred spirits were all obvious bullshit, but Hoseok still believed that love came through. He was certain that he had a gift for seeing the love and the sparkles in people. It definitely wasn't hard to find it in himself.

As he walked through the school, he liked to analyse all the relationships he saw: how that new couple in the first grade were so not going to last more than a month; the unnoticed love triangle where two siblings had a crush on the same boy; how Lee Seohyun didn't just like Min Yoongi, she _loved _him; how Kim Namjoon had been trying to get Kim Seokjin's attention for the last year and a half; how Kim Seokjin had been trying to get Kim Namjoon's attention for the last year and a half (Hoseok liked that one, he thought it was cute).

Hoseok saw all of this and was a little bit proud of himself. He did everything he could to push these people together (or apart, in some cases) but tried never to interfere directly. But when he saw how totally infatuated Jungkook and Taehyung were for each other after their interaction on the track, he sighed and decided that he was going to have to push a little harder than he thought.


	15. Chapter 15 - JK

**_15 – JK focus_**

Jungkook didn't dare tell Taehyung he had been tripped. It was such a petty excuse and it might start some unnecessary drama that Jungkook definitely didn't want. Besides, his classmate hadn't hurt him _that_ badly; he was just bleeding a lot, that was all. It wasn't as if Jungkook had never been touched before.

He flopped down onto his bed after a very long day and didn't know how he would get up and go to school the next morning. He looked at his clock and rephrased his thoughts. He didn't know how he would get up and go to school that morning. He crawled under the covers where his dog had already sought refuge and closed his eyes without changing out of his clothes. He thought about the day before and he thought about Taehyung. How Jungkook had fallen and Taehyung was immediately by his side. He couldn't ask for a better crush than that.

He awoke later that morning, just about. He rolled off his bed and lay on the floor for a minute, adjusting to waking life once again. Very tired indeed, Jungkook changed his shirt, packed his bag, swept through his hair once with a brush and left the house.

It was freezing outside and Jungkook regretted not taking a coat. The bus was crowded and Jungkook tried and failed to drown out the noise with music. He jumped slightly when someone sat next to him. The tired part of his brain (most of his brain) wanted to tell whoever it was to go away, but Jungkook knew he wasn't that kind of person. He took one of his earphones out and looked across. It was Yeo Chang-Gu a.k.a, the boy that tripped Jungkook.

"Hey, Jungkook, I just wanted to say sorry for tripping you up yesterday," he said and Jungkook was confused, but let him continue, "I know it was a dick move and I'm sorry. I just wanted to win and everyone knows you're one of the fastest runners in the school. How's your knee, by the way?" Jungkook felt that politeness was the best option, given that he didn't really have many good friends.

"Oh, it's fine, thanks for asking. You were probably going to win anyway if I'm honest. I'm not going to hold a grudge against you or anything, we're cool," Jungkook smiled and Chang-Gu smiled back and said,

"Okay, cool," before leaving to go and sit somewhere else. Staring out of the window, Jungkook replayed his music and wondered what had prompted such an apology.

He walked into the school and prepared for a very long and boring day. History, English, Geography, double Chemistry, Religion, and Physics. Jungkook missed middle school and its five-period days.

Somehow, Jungkook managed to make it to the end of Physics without collapsing completely. His prediction was correct: it had been an incredibly boring day. Jungkook hadn't seen Taehyung, Jimin or Yoongi all day and sat alone in the library at lunch. He wasn't really in the mood for trying to hold a conversation with someone and stayed pretty quiet for the whole morning. The bell was about to ring for dismissal when an announcement came on the tannoy.

"_Could Kim Taehyung and Jeon Jungkook please report to the Games office after school, please?_" The whole class ooh-ed at Jungkook and he rolled his eyes. What had he done? The bell finally rang and Jungkook fought against the mass of students rushing to the door to get to the bus stop. When he arrived on the other side of the school, Taehyung was already leaning against the wall, waiting to be admitted. He looked up at Jungkook and shrugged. Jungkook shrugged back, equally intrigued as to their summons.

The head of Games, Mr Ko, poked his head around the doors and told them both to enter and take a seat. They sat down and Jungkook felt incredibly nervous. He was just glad he had Taehyung by his side. Mr Ko sat across from them and folded his hands in a classic teacher pose.

"Now, boys," he began, "a situation has come to our attention concerning yesterday's athletics events. Jungkook, it was of our opinion that you tripped, but it seems that you both had other ideas." Jungkook looked confused and Taehyung looked down. "A student, who will remain anonymous, has informed us that you took it upon yourselves to verbally reprimand a fellow competitor for tripping you over, which is something that he did not do." In his periphery, Jungkook saw Taehyung's head turn sharply upwards. The teacher looked at him. "Is there something wrong, Taehyung?"

Taehyung looked insulted and annoyed but Jungkook looked at him silently, pleading with his eyes that Taehyung wouldn't say anything. He didn't know what was happening, but he really didn't want to get into an argument with a teacher. Taehyung looked back and his face softened. He understood.

"No, sir. Sorry, sir." Mr Ko sat back in his chair.

"Good. Now, this kind of behaviour is unacceptable and can be severely damaging for a student. For your punishment, you must tidy up the equipment cupboard. We will also give you a warning. If something like this happens again, your parents will be called in. Do you understand?" Taehyung and Jungkook mumbled,

"Yes sir," and were dismissed. They didn't talk until they reached the equipment cupboard. It seemed that quite a few people got detentions since it was already pretty clean. Taehyung threw down his bag and loudly asked,

"Why didn't you say anything? You were tripped, you had the right to complain!" Jungkook was confused. He didn't like Taehyung being angry; it didn't feel right to Jungkook. Trying to stay calm, he replied,

"How did you know someone tripped me?" Taehyung sighed in exasperation and Jungkook felt very guilty for making him feel that way.

"Because I saw it, Jungkook, I'm not an idiot." It seemed that the frustration was infectious, as Jungkook also found himself getting heated.

"Out of everything he said, you're getting mad because he thought I tripped by myself? What about 'verbally reprimanding' someone? That didn't happen either!" Taehyung didn't retaliate, but suddenly went red and started picking at his nails. Jungkook was annoyed at him and didn't quite know why. "Hold on, you actually 'verbally reprimanded' someone? Why the hell would you do that?" Taehyung animated himself again.

"Because he tripped you up! He made you bleed! You were expecting me to just let that go? Hell no, Kookie, you deserve better than that!"

"I- " Wait. What? "Did you just call me 'Kookie'?" Taehyung blushed again and smiled for a split-second, warming Jungkook's heart.

"Oh, yeah, um, sorry, I don't quite know what I was thinking. But you do deserve better than that." Taehyung was less furious than before. In fact, he was rather gentle. Jungkook knew that he genuinely believed in what he was saying and he was ever so slightly panicked by a sudden urge to confess.

"Look, Taehyung, it's fine, okay? I get that you were just looking out for me. Chang-Gu even apologised to me this morning." Taehyung chuckled and smiled his cute boxy smile.

"Yeah, I did tell him to." Jungkook laughed. He looked at Taehyung as if he was the only thing he ever wanted in his life. They started organising the things on the shelves and Jungkook said,

"You can call me Kookie if you want to. I'm just not used to having nicknames. My brother calls me JK sometimes, but only when he's making fun of me." Taehyung laughed and Jungkook savoured the sound. "You know this place is pretty tidy already, I don't think they'd notice if we just left it like this. Besides, if we run now, we could still catch the bus." Jungkook didn't really want to leave, but he did know that Taehyung needed to catch the bus. Taehyung looked around and then at his watch.

"Yeah, okay," he said, walking towards the door. He tried to turn the handle, but he couldn't. He frowned at Jungkook and tried harder. It still wouldn't open. "What the hell?" Jungkook walked over and looked through the window.

"Ah." The door was locked from the outside. "Taehyung? We're locked in." Taehyung sighed and ran his hand through his hair, subconsciously making Jungkook fall in love with him.

"Okay, Mr Ko left right after we did and the cleaners don't go through this corridor until quarter to five-ish." Jungkook tilted his head inquisitively. "I used to stay here after school for a while. And it looks like we will be again." Jungkook couldn't help but smile.


	16. Chapter 16 - JM

**_16 – JM focus_**

Jimin had been standing outside the gates, waiting to walk with Taehyung, for five minutes. He knew the bus would leave soon but he didn't want to ditch his best friend. Sure, Jungkook was with him, but Jimin was doubtful of the boy's ability to hold an unsupported conversation with his crush. He did worry about Taehyung.

"Jimin! What are you doing? The bus will leave soon," said Hoseok, who had just exited the gates from behind Jimin. After Jimin explained why he was waiting, Hoseok looked at him apologetically. "I'm sorry, Chim, I walked past the office and it looked like they both got detention. I think they're going to be a while, so I think you should go without him. You know you can't just skip a practice."

Jimin looked longingly back at the school but decided that Hoseok was right. He didn't want to leave Taehyung there or get on the bus without him; it felt like abandonment. However, looking up at Hoseok, he smiled and realised he was overreacting. Jimin didn't know what they had done, but at least they had each other. He sped to the bus with Hoseok and managed to catch it before it departed. Being the last ones on the bus, there was very limited seating choice. Everyone was in groups of even numbers and nobody wanted to disturb those sitting by themselves. This made it very hard to find two empty seats that were near each other.

Hoseok nudged Jimin and he saw two seats, one in front of the other, that were unoccupied. Jimin shrugged and they decided to take them. Jimin took the seat behind Hoseok, who immediately swivelled around to face Jimin. He smiled and Jimin found it impossible not to smile back. They managed to chat relatively normally for about a minute. Whoever was next to Jimin was part of a group of five with the people behind them and the girl next to Hoseok was engaged in an intense conversation with the two in front of her.

It was loud and crowded and Jimin wished he hadn't left Taehyung. Sure, he was probably still in detention and waiting for him would have cost Jimin valuable practice time, but even so, Jimin felt a little bit guilty.

Jimin and Hoseok's stop was the seventh along the bus route and not many people stayed on that long. After the second stop, just fewer than half the students had left, including the four people behind Jimin, but not the one next to him. The boy turned back around, having nobody to talk to, and Jimin watched Hoseok double take as he recognised him.

"Oh, Yoongi-hyung! Hi, I didn't realise it was you! You know Park Jimin, right?" Jimin froze in his seat. He hadn't noticed it was Yoongi either. Trying desperately hard to be calm and cool and normal, he turned his head towards Yoongi and smiled politely. Yoongi was even more beautiful up close. The way his soft hair looked naturally fluffy and irresistible, his intoxicating and mysterious eyes. _If only he would smile,_ thought Jimin. Yoongi looked back at him and replied to Hoseok,

"Not really, but I've seen him around." Jimin thought that being referred to in 3rd person was better than not being acknowledged at all, so he took that as a win. Yoongi went back to looking at his phone and Jimin noticed he had his earphones in. Hoseok objected resolutely,

"Yoongi, would you please get off your cellphone? I know you get off at the sixth stop and I really don't feel like ignoring you until then. Just have a nice conversation with me and Jimin," he said and Jimin admired his confidence. Yoongi considered the proposition. Jimin didn't know what he wanted the answer to be, which made him even more anxious to hear it. Finally, Yoongi sighed and paused his music, taking out his earphones and stuffing them in his coat pocket.

"Fine." Jimin was expecting him to offer conversation, and when it didn't happen, he gathered all his strength and courage to say,

"Well done in the basketball tournament yesterday, you played really well." Yoongi just stared out of the window and said,

"I could have done better." He spoke with almost no emotion and Jimin laughed. He felt a strange compulsion to keep trying, despite Yoongi's insensate response.

"Are you kidding? You beat everyone else by miles _and_ Jungkook told us you weren't feeling well. That's pretty cool." Yoongi huffed softly but didn't reply. As much as Jimin wanted to keep going, he knew he was blushing and thought that if he spoke again, he would stutter. So he let Hoseok do what Hoseok did best and talk until Yoongi's stop. Yoongi mumbled a goodbye to Jimin who felt weirdly honoured, despite having been blanked for about three stops. Hoseok apologised on Yoongi's behalf and Jimin wondered if Yoongi was usually like this.


	17. Chapter 17 - YG

**_17 – YG perspective (414)_**

I swore to every god there was that I would kill Jung Hoseok. Immediately after Jimin sat down next to me, I instantly found it harder to concentrate, harder to speak, harder to exist when he was near. I badly wanted to hate him for it but, as hard as I tried, I couldn't. So I blamed everyone else around him instead. I cursed Jeon Jungkook for being so goddamn perceptive. I cursed Jung Hoseok for forcing this on me.

As soon as he drew Jimin's attention to me, I wanted to die right then and there. I didn't know how long I could last in a proper exchange with my actual, real-life crush. I really tried to dodge that conversation, to just be able to sit silently with him beside me and treasure the comfort that he brought me. But when Hoseok told me to put away my phone, I didn't want to look rude or reliant on it, so I had to give this a shot.

I was not prepared for Jimin to actually speak to me. He had the brightest, most striking smile that was close to shattering every brick I had ever built in my wall. It took my everything to reply curtly and try not to let that fucking stammer come back. I had no idea what it was about Park Jimin that did that to me, but Jungkook had already heard it and I was not about to let something like that get out and make my life hell again.

That boy was determined. He gave me a compliment and I didn't reply. Not because I didn't want to, but because I couldn't. I didn't even try because I knew I would either stutter or make no sound at all. I just swallowed hard and tried to distract myself with whatever was outside. It didn't work though since I could see his reflection in the window. He was so incredibly lucky to see that every time he looked in the mirror.

I stayed out of the conversation after that. I didn't trust myself. When I left, I managed to say goodbye to Jimin without completely breaking down. I walked home in the cold and knew that my bedroom wall was not going to have a good night with the tension I had in my fists. They were already clenched involuntarily and I had to consciously stop myself from punching a lamppost. I would have to restrain myself until I got home.


	18. Chapter 18 - V

**_18 – V focus_**

Locked. In a cupboard. With Jungkook. Taehyung couldn't think of anywhere else he wanted to be more than there, but he pretended otherwise. If he looked as delighted as he felt, Jungkook would think he was insane. He felt slightly embarrassed at having called him Kookie, but hell, it had worked.

"So…" said Jungkook, looking slightly awkward, "what do you wanna do now?" Taehyung strained to prevent himself from telling Jungkook the answer that was actually in his head and sat on the floor with his back to the wall.

"I don't know," Taehyung said as Jungkook slid to the floor beside him, making his heart beat louder, "We could just talk. You said you had a brother, right? Older or younger?" Jungkook smiled and Taehyung was proud of himself for having a normal conversation with someone that stunning.

"Older. His name's Jung-Hyun and he's the best big brother in the world, most of the time. He hits me and teases me a lot, but he's my brother; that's what he's supposed to do. What about you? Any siblings?" Taehyung smiled as he remembered the two little menaces he had waiting for him at home.

"Yeah, two. I've got a little sister called Eon-Jin and a little brother called Jeong-Gyu. They're so annoying sometimes, but they're cute so I guess that doesn't matter." Jungkook was looking at him, his shining eyes making Taehyung's breath hitch, just as it did the first time he saw them. Jungkook smirked,

"You're the oldest? Aren't you supposed to be a bit more…mature?" Taehyung folded his arms in a fake pout.

"I am mature!" he whined, "Who came running after you when you hurt your knee? Who told that mean kid off when he tripped you up, huh? Maturity at its finest." Jungkook giggled and Taehyung realised how much he loved making the younger boy laugh.

"Can I ask you something, hyung?" Jungkook asked and Taehyung felt himself blush at the name.

"Yeah, sure, anything." Taehyung didn't know what it was, but Jungkook looked slightly apprehensive and Taehyung found himself being feeling anxious for him.

"Do you know if Park Jimin… Does he like anyone?"_ I'm sorry, what?_ Taehyung was confused. Why did Jungkook care? Did he like Jimin? Was he only hanging out with Taehyung to get to Jimin? All of this sped through Taehyung's mind and he tried incredibly hard not to let it show on his face. _Calm down_. He didn't know that Jungkook liked Jimin. It might just be curiosity. If so, then why was he so nervous? And why did Taehyung feel like he had been stabbed? Taehyung thought the best option was to let him down gently and pray that he was wrong about this.

"Um… yeah, he does. Sorry," Taehyung scratched the back of his neck and refused eye contact. Jungkook laughed,

"Not me! I was just…curious that's all. I just heard rumours, or something, about someone that liked him." Jungkook was lying, but Taehyung was unsure of what he was trying to hide. "He does like someone, though. It might be the same person!" Jungkook's doe eyes lit up and Taehyung relaxed. He wouldn't be this happy if he really did like Jimin. Taehyung was still caught in a dilemma. To spill or not to spill. As much as he loved Jimin, he trusted Jungkook and wanted him to know that.

"Okay. You promise not to tell?" Jungkook nodded eagerly. Taehyung leaned in to whisper in his ear and was thankful for an excuse to be this close. "Min Yoongi." As he pulled away, Jungkook squealed quietly. Taehyung looked at him and saw that he was bright red and biting his lip in excitement. "What?" Jungkook stayed silent but looked like he was about to have a heart attack. No way. "You're kidding, right?" The excited younger shook his head. Taehyung's jaw dropped and he found himself just as energised as Jungkook. Jimin would be ecstatic.

"Taehyung, you can't say anything." Maybe not then. "Yoongi would kill me if he found out I told and I really don't feel like provoking him." Taehyung felt like a child again.

"But Jimin would be through the freaking roof! He's liked Yoongi since a whole year ago and you're telling me we can't tell him?" Something clicked in Taehyung's memory. "And if Yoongi wrote that note for Jimin then he'd be just as grateful if we got them together. Please, Jungkook?" Jungkook looked conflicted but still stubborn.

"No, we can't. None of Yoongi's friends even know he's into guys and they're all low-key insanely homophobic. If he started dating Jimin, he'd get ruined. Plus, I'm wasn't even kidding when I said he'd kill me. He's kind of scary." Taehyung could understand this. He was torn between two worlds and didn't know what to do. And idea sparked in his mind.

"Okay, okay, how about this: we tell Jimin and he doesn't spend the rest of his life thinking that Yoongi hates him. If we can get him to confess, then it's up to Yoongi what to do. If he chooses to be truthful, then he can decide to ditch his friends or decide that they can't be together. If he lies and rejects Jimin, then we can say we made an honest mistake and Yoongi will have to live with his choice." Taehyung waited for Jungkook's verdict. After a while of debating in his head, Jungkook beamed and nodded.

They laughed and talked for over half an hour about how to set their plan into action until they heard movement in the corridor. Taehyung sprang to the door and started knocking furiously while Jungkook waved at the window to try and get the cleaner's attention. After a minute, Taehyung heard the lock click and stepped back from the door. He was slightly disappointed that his time with Jungkook was over but he was also glad to be getting out of that cupboard.

The cleaner looked confused when he opened the door, but the two politely thanked him and walked out of the school. They parted when they realised they both caught different buses and Taehyung yearned to take the really long route just to spend more time with his crush. When he finally got home, he flopped down on his bed and squealed into his pillow like the infatuated little schoolboy that he was.

The next morning, he practically skipped onto the bus, much to the confusion of the exhausted Jimin. Taehyung bounced to his seat and beamed at Jimin.

"You will never guess what happened yesterday," they spoke together. As badly as Taehyung wanted to spew every detail of the day before in Jimin's direction, he let the black-haired boy speak first.

"I sat next to you-know-who on the bus home," Jimin explained, "We didn't even know it was him until the rest of his friends left. But he was so quiet and Hoseok basically talked for the whole time since I couldn't concentrate and _he _wasn't talking. I don't know if he's always like this, but it felt weird." Taehyung grinned.

"Well my friend, I have something to tell you, although I should probably wait until we get into school for that." Jimin looked puzzled and Taehyung was still buzzing. "Anyway, yesterday I accidentally got locked in a cupboard with you-know-who…" Jimin burst out laughing and Taehyung laughed with him. "I know! We were meant to be tidying the cupboard, but I think someone locked it from the outside. So, we're in the cupboard just chilling and I swear to God, Jimin, he's soooo beautiful!" Taehyung didn't even care that he was in full fanboy mode, he just wanted to get to school and have everything work out exactly as he had planned.


	19. Chapter 19 - JH

**_19 – JH focus_**

So far, the plan was going superbly. It had been easy to sit Jimin and Yoongi together without Taehyung there. Hoseok did feel a little bit guilty about ratting out Taehyung and Jungkook and then locking them in a cupboard, but love was hard work and there was no other way it would happen. After that, Hoseok just led Jimin right next to Yoongi's usual seat and from there it was a matter of waiting.

Now, things were falling into place. Jimin knew a little bit more about Yoongi and what he was really like. Hopefully, the brown-haired boy's reclusiveness didn't scare Jimin too far off, but Hoseok doubted that Jimin could ever get over his crush so easily. Yoongi had been forced to confront his feelings, something which he definitely did not do as often as he should. Hoseok didn't know what had happened in the cupboard with Taehyung and Jungkook, but he bet it was good.

Meanwhile, Seokjin and Namjoon had become insufferable. They rarely actually spoke to each other, but they would both ramble on about the other to Hoseok and it was getting a little bit unbearable even by Hoseok's standards. Hoseok was trying to think of a clever plan to push them together as well, but he thought he should at least wait until his other projects had panned out as beautifully as he was imagining.


	20. Chapter 20 - JK

**_20 – JK focus_**

Jungkook's head was still thrumming with memories of the day before. Making those plans with Taehyung, locked in that room, Jungkook hadn't wanted it to end. But he was still excited. The fact that Yoongi's crush liked him back was the biggest revelation Jungkook had ever heard. He felt like he was in a k-drama.

Waiting patiently by the trophy cabinet on the 2nd floor, Jungkook lit up when he saw Taehyung dragging a very perplexed Jimin up the stairs.

"Taehyung what the hell is going on? Jungkook, can you please help me out here?" Jungkook clapped his hands together and said,

"Yes, I think I can. You know Min Yoongi, right?" Jimin still looked very confused.

"Yeah, I mean I've seen- Taehyung what the hell did you tell him?" Taehyung stepped back from the suddenly fuming boy and raised his hands in surrender.

"Jiminie, please hear him out this is very important and, believe me, you are going to want to hear this." Jimin retracted from the taller boy and looked at Jungkook expectantly. Jungkook knew that this wasn't his own confession, but he still felt nervous.

"Well, Yoongi told me (sort of) something about you. And he'd kill me if he knew I told, but I think it's important that you know this." Jungkook nodded at Taehyung and watched as Taehyung whispered in Jimin's ear. Jungkook got flashbacks to the previous day. He swore he could still feel the hot breath on his skin, feel his lips brush against his hair. Jungkook shook himself out of his daydream to see Jimin standing frozen in the corridor. A smile ghosted his lips.

"You liars," Jimin said quietly. Taehyung and Jungkook shook their heads.

"Nope, it's true," Jimin flushed deeply and turned to hug Taehyung tightly. The bell rang loudly and Taehyung, who was still clung to by Jimin, mouthed "I'll talk later," before walking to their classroom.

Jungkook felt that he was doing the work of a higher power. It felt nice to know that he had made someone so happy. He had no idea what was going to happen next or whether or not he would be murdered by the 3rd grader within the next week, but Jimin and Taehyung were happy. Even if in a way, Jungkook wasn't.

He felt jealous of Jimin. He had gotten the guy he wanted and might even start dating him if things went his way. Jungkook had none of that. For all he knew, Taehyung didn't even like Jungkook's gender, let alone him. All he could do was play out scenarios in his mind that he knew would never happen, but they at least stopped him from going insane with longing. It was lonely, but it worked.

Jungkook sat down at his desk and opened his book. He barely got through five minutes of maths before Taehyung infiltrated his mind again. He remembered their closeness on the floor of the cupboard and multiplied it tenfold. He imagined Taehyung's lips on his, his tongue on his. He imagined his deep, syrupy voice melt into moans of ecstasy against Jungkook's mouth. He imagined the feel of his smooth hands gliding over his body, taking it, exploring it, claiming it…

"Jungkook!" He suddenly realised that everyone was looking at him and he felt somehow exposed. "Would you care to concentrate?" Jungkook sat up straight, embarrassed.

"Yes, miss. Sorry, miss." His heart was beating unnaturally fast and his body flushed with heat. He was going to have to watch himself in the future; he couldn't afford another incident like that again.

For the first time since school began, Jungkook really felt like he needed help with this. As in it was seriously disrupting his thought and sleep patterns and he didn't know what to do. And he didn't even have anyone he could tell; his only real confidants were his crush and his crush's best friend. Not ideal. There was another person, though. Except that person would probably never want to talk to him again. Jungkook would have to think carefully about his next move.

Eventually, lunchtime rolled around and Jungkook tried to prepare himself to keep cool around Taehyung. It was proving harder than he had thought. He didn't know which shady corner of his mind his imagination had pulled that daydream from, but Jungkook knew he would do anything to silence it.

When Jungkook found Taehyung and Jimin, they had already been talking for some time, judging by the red in both of their cheeks. They were laughing and ushered Jungkook over to where they were sitting. Jungkook awkwardly sat next to Taehyung and concentrated on the conversation. Jimin was still in shock, but he believed that they were telling the truth after hearing the disclosure. Taehyung slung his arm around Jimin like a proud parent and said,

"Here's the thing, Chim, you're going to have to confess first." Jimin looked up startled and ran his hands through his hair.

"What? Why?" Despite believing them, Jimin still looked panicked by the proposition.

"Because you have to," Jungkook explained, "He'd slit my throat if he knew I told anyone about this. Besides, the way he's treated you for the last year, do you really think he'd confess first anyway?" A very good point that Jungkook was surprised he could think of. Jimin sighed heavily.

"Okay. I'll think about it over the weekend. Who knows, I might do it on Monday if I'm brave enough." This was clearly a lie, but Jungkook admired the boy's ambition. He walked around with them for a while but found that he kept zoning out of the conversation for no apparent reason. After a while, he excused himself and just walked by himself to clear his head and analyse his feelings – and there were a lot of them.

Jungkook couldn't figure out what was wrong. He had been basically fine for weeks now, and suddenly it felt like the first time he had ever seen Taehyung all over again. This didn't happen last time. It had stayed for a while, but it blew over and he had moved on with his life. Jungkook couldn't imagine trying to move on with his life after this; it sounded physically impossible. He had to tell someone, but he couldn't. Who was there to tell? His mind wandered back to the only viable option and Jungkook actually considered it. It would take work, but at least it was actually possible.

On Saturday morning, Jungkook got up after a relaxing 6 hours of sleep. He unplugged his phone and began his quest. It would take a lot of asking for favours, but he had planned this and was fairly confident he knew what he was doing. After about an hour of texting people, most of whom he didn't know very well, asking for phone numbers and bouncing from chat to chat, he finally found who he was looking for.

_Hi, you don't really know me, but I was wondering if you could tell me someone's address? He barely picks up his phone and he has something of mine, _Jungkook typed out and finally sent the message; it had taken long enough. He didn't know if she'd even reply to him that day. She was probably busy.

_Yh k who? _Came the reply. Maybe not so busy. Jungkook smiled as he did not expect it to be this easy.

_Min Yoongi, _replied Jungkook and she gave him a street and a house number almost instantly. Poor girl. Jungkook got dressed and packed his bag with random books to read on the bus. He jumped down the stairs and opened the front door.

"I'm going to the library!" he lied and ran out of the house.

His symptoms hadn't been getting any better. His actual dreams were laced with Taehyung and his gorgeous orange hair. Truthfully, if Jungkook didn't have to go to school or do homework or anything, he would not be complaining. But this crush was affecting his concentration in a way that he did not think was healthy. So he turned to the best person he could think of for internally dealing with shit.

After a long while, the bus stopped near Yoongi's house and Jungkook stepped onto the street. He was a little bit nervous and he didn't know why. He gathered up his courage and knocked on the door. A pretty lady stepped out after a few seconds and smiled at him politely. "Hello, my darling, can I help you?"

Jungkook smiled and bowed slightly. "Yes ma'am, is Min Yoongi home? I'm his friend from school." The lady, Yoongi's mother, nodded and went upstairs to get him. Such a lovely woman and yet seemingly the polar opposite of Yoongi: courteous, friendly and helpful. Jungkook saw Yoongi slink down the stairs and approach the door. He rolled his eyes when he saw it was Jungkook and said,

"What do you want?" Jungkook took a deep breath and prepared himself to let out his feelings (if he got let in at all, that was).

"I-I need your help. Th-there's a thing happening and I don't know how to stop it." Jungkook felt he had been sufficiently vague and Yoongi pondered the request. Eventually, he stepped aside, granting Jungkook access to the house.


	21. Chapter 21 - YG

**_21 – YG perspective_**

I didn't know what the hell Jeon Jungkook was doing in my house. I sure as hell didn't want him there. I let him in because he seemed shaken. He wouldn't come to me unless he had anywhere better to go. Besides, maybe he could relieve the loneliness that I had been feeling recently. He was better than my reflection or Holly.

I let him in and he slid off his shoes and followed me upstairs. I picked up Holly to move him out of the way and he smiled, maybe noticing I was soft for my dog. I had a feeling that smile would disappear pretty quickly once he entered my room. I smirked and pushed open my bedroom door, letting him into the mess of a living space I had created for myself.

My bed was heaped with creased blankets and sheets. My open wardrobe was filled with unsorted, unfolded clothes. The desk chair was on its side and nowhere near the desk since I threw it yesterday. One of my windows was still taped up with cardboard from when it smashed last year and there was paper all over the floor: some of it sheet music or torn pages from exercise books or worksheets from forever ago. I noticed that the wall was forming a dent.

I left Jungkook to stand in the doorway taking in the sights while I put Holly down on my desk and retrieved the chair, returning it to its correct place. I sat on the chair, setting Holly on my lap and motioned for Jungkook to sit on the mattress. He carefully walked across the floor and sat on my bed, twiddling his thumbs.

"Thank you for letting me in. I didn't think you would," he said in a quiet voice.

"Yeah, you and me both. How did you even get my address?" I asked, wondering how that question hadn't crossed my mind earlier. He laughed nervously and replied,

"I asked Lee Seohyun. She knows basically everything." I decided to fume silently at this instead of trying to voice my annoyance. I just exhaled heavily through my nose and asked him,

"Why are you here?" Jungkook was being quieter than usual and he looked genuinely troubled, which I don't think was entirely my fault. To calm him down, I gave him Holly, something I wasn't entirely comfortable with, but it seemed to work and he smiled. He stroked him while he thought of his answer.

"I've got this…obsession, sort of, and it's taking over and I don't know what to do about it. It's on my mind all the time and it just won't go away and I thought you might be able to help." I was fairly sure I wouldn't be able to, but I was unusually willing to give it a shot.

"Okay. This obsession: person or thing?" I was running through my thought process out loud and he answered succinctly.

"Person."

"Okay." I still didn't know why he was here. "Why didn't you go to Taehyung?" I didn't want to bring up Jimin because I didn't want to make this about me. Jungkook focused totally and completely on Holly and said,

"Because it's Taehyung." Ah.

"You're kidding?" He shook his head. I didn't want to laugh at that coincidence. I knew how he felt. We both liked boys from the same friendship group who did not like us back. Brilliant. I had an idea. I wasn't looking forward to this, but I believed it would help both of us in the long run. I stood up and locked the door and then turned around to face him.

"You tell anyone about this, Jeon Jungkook, and you are not going to live to 2nd grade." Jungkook looked confused and afraid but nodded anyway. I opened the cupboard at the back of my room, the one that contained the things I needed to get me through the worse days. In no particular order, I chucked about 4 family-sized bags of chips, 2 giant bars of chocolate, 3 boxes of brownies and 5 packets of popcorn onto the bed and carried a six-pack of sodas over to Jungkook and sat next to him. He looked like he wanted to laugh and I let him.

"We are going to sit here and talk about our feelings until all of this food is gone," I smiled and we sat cross-legged, facing each other on the bed with the snacks between us and Holly on Jungkook's lap. He looked far less anxious than before.

"I mean… I don't know what I was expecting from you, but I don't think it was anything close to this. You've got snacks and puppy therapy," he grinned.

"I'm not soft, Jungkook. As soon as we leave this room, none of this happened, got it?" He nodded, still smiling. "Good. So: Taehyung. First of all, my condolences. When did that start?" I felt like a therapist, but with a lot more food. Jungkook opened one of the packets of chips and I opened the popcorn. He started to explain.

"It didn't start off this bad. We ran into each other on the first day, literally into each other, and he was really nice and gorgeous and I really liked him. He just kept smiling at me around the corridors and I kept blushing for no reason." That sounded very familiar. "Then I hung out with him and Jimin all of sports day and he was so friendly. He picked me up when I was tripped on the track. Then we got locked in the equipment cupboard by accident during detention and I found out he threatened the boy who tripped me and made him apologise. I wanted to be annoyed at him, but I couldn't." Very familiar. "Then recently I've started daydreaming… really not normal things and I can't concentrate because he's always in my head."

I really felt for the kid. He was so young and confused. He had so much to go through and so much left to learn.

"When you say 'not normal things'," I asked, "what sort of things do you mean?" He stuttered and I laughed inwardly. "So 'not normal' as in 'sexual'?" He blushed and nodded again. I laughed audibly this time. "Jungkook, that's the most normal thing in the world! You just need to learn how to keep your fantasies in the background instead of right at the front of your mind. Like, you know when you listen to music when you do homework? The music's there, but you're still concentrating on the work. Let your subconscious do its thing and don't focus on it too much."

Jungkook looked up. "That makes sense. Is that how you deal with Jimin?" I knew I wasn't the blushing type, but I could feel the blood run to my face.

"Hey, I thought this was about you," I retaliated and he giggled. "But, yeah, basically. I don't…I try not to think about him ever, just ignore him but it doesn't fucking work apparently." Jungkook looked genuinely interested and I didn't realise how much I needed to talk to someone about this. "I sort of hate him for it but at the same time, I can't. Like how you said you can't be annoyed at Taehyung. That's what the dent in the wall is from: I punch it when I'm frustrated. I just…" I ran my fingers through my hair and buried my face in my hands. "I love him and I can't help it."

I looked up and Jungkook was biting his lip to stop himself from smiling. "What are you laughing at?" I was kind of pissed at him for it.

"Nothing."


	22. Chapter 22(i) - JM

**_22i – JM focus_**

So Yoongi liked him back. When Jimin heard that, it was like a thousand suns going supernova in his mind and heart. He had waited for this for such a long time and now it was finally happening. Jimin had already told Taehyung what would happen if he was lying and Taehyung looked sufficiently scared. Jimin may have been small, but he was feisty as all hell when he needed to be.

Over the weekend, he spent a lot of time thinking about what to do next and by the time he walked in on Monday, he had it all planned out. He would get Hoseok to drop a note to Yoongi saying to go to the bathroom on the ground floor. With any luck, he'd listen, Jimin would meet him in the bathroom and confess. Yoongi was a wild card and Jimin didn't know him that well, so he had no idea how Yoongi would react. There was only one way he could find out.

Monday lunch, he found Hoseok and pulled him aside. Jimin was very excited and waited impatiently for Hoseok to excuse himself from his conversation.

"What is it, Jimin?" Jimin stopped bouncing up and down and tried to regain his composure.

"Well, you know that guy I like?" Hoseok nodded, suddenly more invested in the conversation. "Apparently, Jungkook told me that he likes me back." Hoseok beamed widely.

"Took you long enough to notice!" Jimin gasped.

"You knew about it as well?" How did everyone know about this except for him?

"Yeah, I mean he's good at hiding it, but I can see through him. Are you going to tell him?" Hoseok looked just as excited as Jimin by this point.

"Yeah, and I could use your help. Could you drop him a note halfway through Geography telling him to go to the bathroom on the Languages corridor? I don't want anyone to walk in." Hoseok smiled and ruffled Jimin's dark hair.

"Of course, Jiminie! Anything for love!" He hugged Jimin and went back to his friends. Jimin grinned. This was all so exciting and he loved it.

2:30 pm and Jimin excused himself to go to the bathroom. His stomach was twisting and turning and his mind was filled with various bits and pieces of speeches he wanted to say. He finally made his way to the first-floor bathroom and sat on the sinks, waiting for his crush to arrive.

He thought back to the second week walking down the pathway alone. He had been pushed and teased and bullied and was ready to go home and tell his parents that he wanted to move schools. He heard the rhythmic thumping of a basketball on one of the courts as he was about to pass it and was almost paralysed.

Whoever was playing was one of the most stunning human beings on the planet. He had ebony black hair and pale skin that shone with sweat and natural beauty as he made shot after shot with his pretty, skilled hands. Jimin wanted to stay and watch forever, but he recognised him as being friends with his bullies. The boy hadn't actually pushed Jimin or anything himself, however, and had actually ushered his friends away. Maybe he had just gotten bored. Or maybe it was a kindness.

Jimin snapped out of his thoughts when he saw the bathroom door open. He took a deep breath to try to relax his nerves. He still didn't really know how this was going to play out. Yoongi walked in, looked at Jimin and rolled his eyes. Jimin felt slightly hurt but understood how Yoongi would be feeling.

"Park Jimin, what do you want? I was in the middle of a lesson and you chose the grossest bathroom in the entire school." Jimin hopped off the counter and started picking at his nails.

"I know but I didn't want anyone to walk in. I need to tell you something." Yoongi folded his arms and rolled his eyes again.

"Fine. Just make it quick, okay?" Jimin felt incredibly nervous and very underprepared but he couldn't take his time or Yoongi would leave.

"Quick, huh? Okay well, I love you and that's sort of been ruining my life for the past year, but that's not your fault, I guess. But yeah. You said make it quick so there it is. I love you."


	23. Chapter 22(ii) - YG

**_22ii – YG perspective_**

What. The. Fuck.


	24. Chapter 22(iii) - JM

**_22iii – JM focus_**

Jimin didn't know how Yoongi would react. They were both standing, frozen staring straight at each other and not talking. Yoongi moved first. He walked closer to Jimin and placed his hand on the other's cheek. Jimin's heart was already trying to break through his ribcage, and this unexpected contact wasn't helping anything. He couldn't speak. His eyes searched through Yoongi's dark gaze. Suddenly, Yoongi's eyes closed and he leaned closer.

He kissed Jimin passionately and smoothly, with the perfect balance between forceful and gentle. Jimin couldn't think and simply lost himself in the euphoria of his first kiss. He felt Yoongi's tongue slide lightly over his lips and entangled his fingers in the older boy's soft hair. Yoongi pushed him slightly until he was leaning against the sinks. What contact they had was not close enough and Jimin desperately wanted more. He pushed himself against Yoongi's body and Yoongi pushed back, clearly needing the same thing.

Without warning, Yoongi pulled away, turned around and stormed out of the door without looking back. Jimin's brain was too foggy to do anything about it. He waited until his heartbeat had returned to a normal rate and then left to go back to class, head still reeling.

He was so completely fazed out that he barely registered the rest of the afternoon passing. It just skipped him by while his subconscious pulled him to wherever he needed to go. Taehyung caught up to him on the bus after school and Jimin had basically recovered by then.

"So," Taehyung asked, anxious for details, "how did it go?" Jimin smiled and looked at his best friend.

"I had my first kiss today." Taehyung's jaw dropped and he ruffled Jimin's hair violently.

"And you didn't tell me sooner?! Jiminie, I'm so proud of you! So you're together?" Jimin looked straight ahead but kept smiling.

"Nope. He was kissing me and then he just left." Taehyung looked confused and sympathetic. "Hey, it happened, didn't it? I'm glad for that, at least. Besides, he does like me back, we just can't be together. That's all." Taehyung stroked his Jimin's arm and said quietly,

"Jimin-ah, I'm sorry, I just…are you okay?" Jimin was shaking slightly as panic and frustration boiled up inside him. Min Yoongi had shown him emotions and levels of love he didn't think were possible to have and shattered them just as quickly as he formed them.

"I'm fine," he lied, wiping away his tears. Taehyung rested his head on Jimin's shoulder and they both sat in silence until Taehyung's stop. Jimin still had two more stops to go and was considering staying longer and going home instead of to dance practice when someone sat down next to him.

"Park Jimin, I promise I'll make this quick." That voice made Jimin want to break down completely. "I love you, okay? Fucking hell, I love you, but this can't happen." Jimin was very close to either punching Yoongi or the window and he knew which one he'd rather break. "At least not here, anyway." Yoongi gripped Jimin's wrist and pulled him to the doors just as the bus was stopping. As soon as they were off the bus, Jimin started to hit Yoongi with his spare hand.

"Yoongi, get off me! You can't just pull me off the bus, I've got a rehearsal tonight! What even makes you think I'd want to- Jesus Christ how are your hands so strong?" Yoongi's grip had not loosened at all, despite the onslaught, and he turned around to face Jimin.

"Jimin, I play the piano and the drums as well as hockey and basketball. So yeah, my hands are pretty strong. Besides, I talked to Hoseok and your dance class is cancelled tonight anyway. Come with me and I'll explain everything." He didn't wait for an answer and started pulling Jimin down the street again.

When they reached Yoongi's front door, he still didn't let go of Jimin to get out his keys, despite Jimin having no intentions of running away at this point. Only once the door was closed behind them did Jimin's wrist get released and Jimin rubbed it subconsciously. He slipped off his shoes and followed Yoongi upstairs. When he reached Yoongi's bedroom, he stopped in the doorway.

"Wow, what happened in here?" He gestured to the floor that was strewn with crumbs and food packets, as well as clothes and various bits of paper. Yoongi pushed some empty chocolate wrappers off his bed and onto the floor to reach a beautiful brown poodle sat on his pillow.

"Jungkook happened in here. He came over on the weekend and we had a deep conversation about love and a lot of snacks." He pushed past Jimin to set the dog down on the landing. He then pulled Jimin into the room and swiftly locked the door. Yoongi turned around and placed on hand on Jimin's waist and the other in his hair. "I've wanted you for so long," he whispered huskily and Jimin wanted to melt.

"I want you, too," managed Jimin and he pulled them back into a kiss. It was slower this time, less animalistic, less hungry, and Jimin savoured the taste of Min Yoongi on his lips.


	25. Chapter 23 - V

**_23 – V focus_**

Taehyung walked home worrying about Jimin. He was so sensitive and Yoongi had broken his heart. Asshole. Sure, he had kissed Jimin, but there was no way that Yoongi loved him as much as he loved Yoongi. He got home and repacked his bag, saying a quick goodbye to Yeontan before leaving for his study group.

By the time he got home, it was 12:30 am. Earlier than usual, but Taehyung wanted to catch up on as much sleep as possible so he went to bed still fully dressed in school uniform. He just about managed to shrug off his tie to stop himself choking in his sleep and drifted off within three minutes.

_There were numbers and Romanised letters everywhere. Taehyung walked through the park he used to play in as a child and relaxed. The fields stretched for ages and the lake sparkled brightly under the setting sun. He found it difficult to see with all of the characters clouding his vision. He stumbled over something on the floor, but something stopped him from hitting the ground. He found himself back on his feet and looking clearly at Jeon Jungkook._

_His brown eyes glinted softly in the dusk light and his hair shone a luxurious, chocolate red. He looked at Taehyung with his hypnotising gaze and Taehyung wanted nothing more than to kiss him. The setting shifted to Taehyung's bedroom and Taehyung noted that he had never actually been there in a dream before. He took Jungkook's hand and led him onto the bed, pushing him onto his back. Taehyung crawled over him and stared into his deep eyes for a second before kissing him sweetly._

_With each passing second, the kiss deepened and Taehyung felt nothing but pure exultation as his hands roamed over Jungkook's body. He felt his lover unbutton his shirt and Taehyung returned the favour. Skin to skin contact was electrifying and Taehyung didn't dare to break the kiss for even a second. He dipped his tongue into Jungkook's mouth and felt him moan. Taehyung shivered and traced the younger boy's muscles with his fingers. A high-pitched screech invaded the darkened room and everything faded to white as Taehyung opened his eyes._

Taehyung's alarm was going off and Yeontan was crying from the end of his bed. Taehyung let go of the pillow he didn't realise he had been clutching to turn off his alarm and Yeontan shut up and trotted out of the room. Taehyung rubbed his eyes and found them to be wet.

As he got dressed, he remembered the dream. He was a little bit shocked at his own imagination. Jungkook was 15; that dream was barely legal. He hadn't realised how strongly Jungkook was affecting his life and it freaked him out just a little bit. He decided to try to ignore it and concentrated on getting ready for school. He walked to the bus stop and tried not to think of Jungkook.

Jimin was not on the bus. Taehyung didn't know where he was, but he wasn't in his usual seat. As he looked around, he realised that Min Yoongi was also missing. There was no way they were playing hooky. Yoongi was in 3rd grade; at that stage, getting the plague wouldn't stop you from going to school. Taehyung sat by himself and prepared for a low day.

He wandered the school by himself. He was already struggling with his thoughts, and having no Jimin to comfort him was harder than he had expected. As he walked aimlessly around the empty corridors, he saw Jungkook walking with two of his friends and smiled politely at them as they passed, but was very aware of the redness in his cheeks.

In the midst of his thoughts, he felt a hand on his shoulder and started at the contact. He turned around to see Jungkook smiling childishly at him. "Morning, hyung!" he said and Taehyung wanted to die. He needed to talk to someone, anyone about how he was feeling and Jungkook existing was proving to be very problematic. But he couldn't let on that anything was wrong, so he smiled and said,

"Hey, Kookie. Why aren't you with your friends?" Jungkook looked back at them and shrugged.

"They aren't as interesting as you are." His arm was still on Taehyung's shoulder and Taehyung swallowed hard. He had never wanted to hear that goddamn bell ring so much in his life. Jungkook was still smiling his dazzling smile. "So what happened with Yoongi and Jimin? I haven't seen either of them today." Taehyung genuinely smiled. As long as he wasn't talking about himself, he'd be fine.

"Well, my friend, rather a lot happened. All Jimin told me was that Yoongi kissed him then just left him," Jungkook gasped and looked like he was watching a TV show. "BUT neither of them were on the bus today and I know Jimin well enough to know that he never gets sick. And, by the time you get to 3rd grade, little one, you don't play hooky with just anyone." It felt a bit weird calling Jungkook little nicknames on the heels of Taehyung's dream, but he had to seem as normal as possible.

"No way! You think they're playing hooky?" Jungkook frowned. "But Yoongi's playing in the hockey tournament at lunch; I saw his name on the sign-up sheet." This confused Taehyung, but what confused him even more was Min Yoongi walking towards them down the corridor with a bunch of his friends. "Okay. So maybe definitely not playing hooky. But he definitely wasn't on the bus?" Taehyung shook his head and glared daggers at Yoongi. The older boy saw him and said,

"Oh, Taehyung? Jimin's in the locker room, I gave him a lift to school." One of his friends ooh-ed at him as they walked away and Taehyung and Jungkook heard him say, "Shut up, faggot, I'm not gay like you," which preceded sounds of hitting and laughing. Taehyung didn't look round but sniggered slightly. Jungkook joined him and said,

"Is that right?" and they laughed as they walked to the locker rooms. The bell rang as soon as they saw Jimin and Jungkook skipped off to his classroom. Taehyung sighed in relief when he remembered he had English first. Taehyung hugged Jimin and they walked to their classroom together.

"Jiminie, where in hell were you this morning? I needed your help, you know," Taehyung flicked Jimin's forehead playfully and the smaller boy blushed.

"Sorry, I woke up really late and missed the bus. I was walking to school when Yoongi saw me from his car and made his dad pull over to pick me up." Taehyung scoffed.

"You accepted a ride from him? After he fully made you cry yesterday?" Jimin went a very deep red.

"Well, the thing is, yesterday, he pulled me off the bus and dragged me to his house," he looked at Taehyung, who was still confused, "and we stayed in his room for a while just talking and studying and…doing other stuff. It was a lot of fun. But we still can't show that we're even friends at school and I hate it." Taehyung smiled. He could tell that Jimin was still thrilled at this newfound relationship. They sat down and Taehyung rested his head on his hands.

"So," he said, "what's he really like?" Taehyung had been listening to Jimin talk about Yoongi for a very long time, but they had never had this much information before.

"He's…sweet. Not soft, but caring. He does his best to hide it but he really is nice. He helped me with my History homework and he's got the most adorable poodle. Sure, he's got a dark side and he takes his temper out on windows and walls and chairs, but he also let Jungkook in over the weekend and he said they just ate chocolate and talked about love. Speaking of Jungkook, I think you should…" Taehyung was saved by the teacher walking into the room and shutting everyone up.


	26. Chapter 24 - RM

**_24 – RM focus (704)_**

Kim Seokjin was the most infuriating human being on the planet. He was just so annoyingly tall and beautiful and he kept catching Namjoon's eye at the most inconvenient times. It wasn't Namjoon's fault he couldn't concentrate; it was Seokjin's.

Namjoon did what he always did when his life wasn't perfect: he wrote a song. Words had always been his speciality and lyrics came easily to him, even when he wasn't trying. Except when he was thinking about Seokjin, all of his words seemed to disappear completely. He sat in the music block trying to put something on the paper that would express how he was feeling when he heard a knock at the door. Spinning around, Namjoon stood to greet the guest but sat down again when he saw it was just Hoseok.

"Oh, hey, Hoseok. What's up?" Hoseok was smiling widely and Namjoon had probably never seen him when he wasn't happy. He replied,

"Hey! I wanted to know if you wanted to partake in a little project I'm putting together." Namjoon gestured for him to sit down and he did so. "Well, I was wondering if you wanted to produce something a little bit more…sing-y. I mean your usual songs are amazing but don't you think they'd sound great with a vocal element? You'd just be working in here as you do anyway, but there'd be someone else as well." Namjoon pondered this for a moment. He had considered this before, but he knew he couldn't sing.

"Yeah, okay. I guess that sounds alright. Do I get to choose my own singer?" Hoseok smiled and shook his head.

"No! My project, my rules! Are you in?" Namjoon sighed and nodded. Hoseok beamed then stood to walk out of the room. Namjoon stopped him by saying, "Hoseok?" The other boy turned around. "If you bring Seokjin in here tomorrow, I swear to God I will murder you." Hoseok just winked and left the room.

Namjoon sat back and knew 100% that Hoseok was bringing Seokjin in tomorrow. Namjoon had heard Seokjin's voice once and it made him want to melt. It was so honey-like and touching and Namjoon knew he could work with that. As he turned around, he heard a vaguely familiar voice. It was deep and soulful and sweet. He stood up and looked into the next room. He was right. It was the boy with the orange hair, Taehyung, playing the piano and singing along. Jimin wasn't with him. He knocked on the door and Taehyung stood up. Namjoon opened the door.

"I thought it was you. What were you singing?" Taehyung blushed and stammered,

"Oh, that…I-it was nothing, I just- "

"Have pride in what you write and they will become even more beautiful," Namjoon advised him, "Can I hear it?" The younger boy nodded and sat back down at the piano. He began to sing.

"_One day/I wrote a long, long letter to the moon/It would not be brighter than you/But I lit a small candle,_" Namjoon thought that his voice brought true feeling and emotion to the lyrics and let him continue. "_At a dusky park/A nameless bird that sings/Where are you, oh you/ Why are you crying/You and I are the only ones here/Me and you, oh you_," he stopped playing. "That's as far as I've gotten." Namjoon smiled in approval.

"It was beautiful." He thought back to Hoseok and cursed him for not being able to choose his own singer. "You know, one of my friends has roped me into a project; he says my songs lack vocals. He said he'd chose the singer, but I guess you could tag along and help." Taehyung didn't look too confident.

"I don't know, I'm really not that good at writing or anything…" Namjoon smirked,

"Yes, you are! I mean Hoseok might get annoyed that I brought someone else along, but- "

"Oh, no he won't," Taehyung smiled, "I know Hoseok, we're sort of friends. He won't mind," he sounded so sure that Namjoon said,

"Okay then, ask him for the details because he sure didn't give me any," and left the room. With his rapping skills, Taehyung's lyricism and Seokjin's voice, they could create something beautiful.


	27. Chapter 25 - JK

**_25 – JK focus_**

Jungkook felt bad about ditching his friends at the first opportunity to hang out with Taehyung for another minute, but he had reasons. Taehyung looked lonely, he wanted to know about Jimin, etc. Jungkook didn't quite know who he was making these excuses to.

He walked around at lunch, trying to find someone to talk to when he saw Jimin walking by himself in the corridor. Before Jungkook could greet him, Jimin ran up to him and hugged him.

"U-um…hi, Jimin," Jungkook managed, awkwardly hugging Jimin. Jimin pulled away and smiled.

"Sorry, I'm in a good mood today. Taehyung and I went to the music block and he wanted to be alone for a bit. I did need to talk to you anyway," Jimin spoke quickly and Jungkook was still a little bit confused.

"Okay…about what?" Jimin grinned and looked off into space.

"Yoongi," he replied and Jungkook perked up again, anxious to hear the details. He felt a part of this, somehow, and really wanted to know how it went. "Come on, let's sit down," Jimin said and pulled him into the locker rooms to sit on the floor. Jungkook had gotten used to there not being enough space for everyone and the floor was probably the only place left. "So, where to start?" Jungkook grinned,

"Yesterday, obviously!" Jimin was clearly just as excited and said,

"Okay, also, we're not allowed to say his name," Jungkook nodded, impatient for the story to begin. "So, I'm in the bathroom waiting for him and he comes in in a right mood, saying I pulled him out of lessons and to make it quick. So I basically said 'I love you,' and we're both just standing there, and then he kissed me," Jungkook gasped dramatically, "It was my first kiss, mind you, and it was so nice. Until he just ups and leaves halfway through, that is." Jungkook gasped again in sympathy and wondered how Yoongi could do something like that. "I was really out of it for the whole rest of the day and didn't really think about anything,"

"Understandable," Jungkook commented and wondered what it would be like to understand. Jimin smiled,

"Right? Then I got on the bus and I told Taehyung and that's when it really hit me and I just cried for a bit. Then Taehyung left and he came up to me and told me he loved me," Jungkook squealed. It was a really cute story. "He literally dragged me off the bus and to his house and we just stayed in his room until it got dark. You left it in quite a state, might I add," Jimin said, eyeing Jungkook up and down. What?

"H-he told you I went over?" Jungkook asked and Jimin smirked,

"Yes, and I will get to that in a minute." Jungkook cursed internally and listened to the rest of the story. "Then this morning, I overslept and missed the bus, so I started walking to school and he saw me on the street and made his dad stop to pick me up. It was really awkward and we didn't talk at all for the whole way. He was back in his school persona, I guess," Jimin looked at his hands, seemingly contemplating his existence and then suddenly snapped his head up and smiled, "Now! About you," Jungkook buried his face in his hands and mumbled,

"Can we not?" Jimin laughed. "How much did you even hear?" he looked up at the older boy.

"Well, I heard you went over to his house and you talked about love, but that can't have been his idea. Ergo, you have a crush." Jungkook stared at him.

"He didn't say who?" Jimin shook his head. Thank. Fuck. For. That. Jungkook let out the breath he didn't realise he had been holding and leaned back. Jimin started poking his arm,

"Who is it?" he whined and Jungkook laughed. There was no way in hell he was telling Jimin that. "Is it Taehyung?" Jungkook flushed deeply before he had a chance to realise that it was a joke. "Wait, what?" Jungkook looked over, trying to act normal and said,

"What?" Jimin rolled his eyes,

"Jungkook, you just went bright red and holy shit I just realised how much you've been fawning over Taehyung. You've been into him since you met him, haven't you?" Jungkook knew he could lie, but it would take a lot of effort to convince Jimin he was wrong. As much as it made Jungkook want to cry, he stayed silent and nodded. He didn't know what Jimin would do: slap him, leave him, tell on him. He certainly wasn't expecting the reaction he got. "Jungkook-ah that's soooo adorable! Oh, that's definitely the best thing I've heard today! Go tell him now!" Jungkook scoffed,

"What? No! Why the hell would I do that? That's the stupidest thing I've heard all day and one of my friends told me to drink a bottle of baked beans earlier," Not even a joke. Jungkook's friends were weird. Jimin punched him in the arm and whispered in his ear,

"He likes you too, idiot."

Mmkay.

No, sorry. What?

"What did you just say?" said Jungkook quietly, not bothering to look up at Jimin. The older boy smiled and replied,

"You heard. Go tell him! Please?" Jungkook smiled faintly.

"No." He had an idea. Taehyung liked him back. After all this time, all this pining and wanting and dreaming, Taehyung actually liked him back. He could hear Jimin begin to protest, so he said, "Hear me out, okay? I know Tae's your best friend and you're more than welcome to say no to this but…would you mind if I fucked with him a little bit?" Jimin looked confused. "Not anything major, but I'll just be like, overly touchy and alluring. You can say no…" But Jimin smiled,

"That sounds like a lot of fun, but you've got to promise you'll only do it when I'm around. I don't want him majorly freaking out or anything and this has been hard on him too, you know." Jungkook nodded furiously and hi-fived Jimin. They were laughing when they heard a familiar voice.

"Hey, guys, what's up?" Let the games begin.

"Hi, Tae, I was just telling Jungkook about yesterday. Do you wanna go somewhere else a little less crowded?" asked Jimin and Taehyung had barely said okay before Jungkook was on his feet.

"Cool! Where?" Jungkook asked. He walked to the other side of Taehyung and ran his fingers across the back of the older boy's neck before settling his arm around his shoulder. He swore he could feel Taehyung shiver. Jungkook instantly knew that this was going to be a lot of fun. He wanted more than anything to be able to kiss Taehyung, to be able to actually be with him, but he wanted to drag it out. He wanted to know for certain that Taehyung needed him as much as he was needed in return. So he carried on playing games.

"I-I don't know. Jimin?" Jungkook watched them have a silent conversation with their eyes. Probably about him.

"We could try under the stairs," Jimin shrugged and Jungkook didn't know where he was talking about. Taehyung sighed,

"Jimin, it's like 1000 degrees under the stairs," Jimin rolled his eyes and smiled,

"So? This school is freezing; we could do with a little heat, don't you think, Jungkook?" he winked at Jungkook before leading the way. Jungkook slid his hand down Taehyung's arm and took his hand to pull him after Jimin. Taehyung let go of Jungkook pretty quickly but was still just a little bit shaken.

'Under the stairs' was literally under the stairs. They took a sharp right turn just before the library stairs and into a gap with walls coated in crude graffiti and the uncarpeted floor coated in blankets and cushions from when some students (long gone) decided to do everyone else a favour. Thankfully, the place was empty. The three sat down and Taehyung and Jimin got out their phones to use the torches, shedding some light on the ink-stained walls.

"Wow," said Jungkook, "You were not kidding when you said 1000 degrees," It was sweltering and humid and Jungkook took off his blazer, making sure Taehyung noticed. Jimin laughed,

"Yeah, the heating pipes run straight through here and there's barely any ventilation. Comfy, though. So Taehyung, where have you been all lunch?" Taehyung leaned back against the wall and Jungkook thought he looked so ethereal in the lights shining out from the floor

"I was just in the music block working on…something." Jimin nodded and Jungkook didn't ask. "Also Namjoon asked me if I wanted to join this project that Hoseok started. I think it's like songwriting or something." Jungkook looked at him with eyes full of longing as he flapped his shirt away from his body, cooling his body and exposing his stomach at the same time. He watched as Taehyung struggled to maintain eye contact and said,

"You can write songs? Hyung, that's so cool!" Jimin raised an eyebrow at 'hyung' but said nothing. "Can I hear one?" Taehyung looked back at him, his dark eyes turning a sparkling hazel in the light.

"No, it's too hot to sing properly. Hell, I can barely breathe," he said and Jungkook pouted. "You can have the lyrics, though, I-I don't mind." He reached into his blazer and pulled out a battered piece of paper covered in scribbles. He handed it to Jungkook, who took it and rested his head on Taehyung's shoulder to read it. Despite the heat, Taehyung let him and Jungkook smiled inwardly.

_One day/ I wrote a long, long letter to the moon/ It would not be brighter than you/ But I lit a small candle/ At a dusky park/ A nameless bird that sings/ Where are you, oh you/ Why are you crying/ You and I are the only ones here/ Me and you, oh you_. Jungkook looked up at Taehyung and swore he could have cried. It was beautiful and Jungkook saw how sensitive Taehyung really was. He wanted to stop playing games.


	28. Chapter 26 - V

**_26 – V focus_**

Jungkook slid his hand around the back of Taehyung's neck, the contact against his hot skin making him shudder. He looked at Jimin for some kind of support and tried to think of someplace to go, but his mind drew a blank.

"I-I don't know. Jimin?" He cringed at his stammer and flicked his eyes towards Jimin, praying for help. Jimin looked back at him and silently reassured him.

"We could try under the stairs," he suggested and Taehyung sighed at the suggestion, despite not having any better ideas.

"Jimin, it's like 1000 degrees under the stairs." Taehyung always felt like he was suffocating, but at least if he was there, he would have an excuse to blush and sweat and choke like Jungkook made him do anyway. Jimin just smiled and rolled his eyes. He was right. At least they could hear each other speak there.

"So? This school is freezing; we could do with a little heat, don't you think, Jungkook?" he said and Taehyung swore he winked before walking away. Jungkook's hand slipped into his to start him walking and Taehyung felt his stomach flutter before he dropped his hand, not wanting to let on that he needed him.

They reached the small seating space under the stairs and Taehyung turned on his torch to shed some light on them. He could swear Jungkook was glowing. The younger boy took off his blazer, and Taehyung watched subconsciously.

"Wow, you were not kidding when you said 1000 degrees," he said and Taehyung nodded in agreement, already being suffocated by the change in temperature. He would normally be fine by now, but Jungkook was messing with his body in more ways than one.

"Yeah," said Jimin, his calmness accentuating Taehyung's lack thereof, "the heating pipes run straight through here and there's barely any ventilation. Comfy, though." Taehyung agreed with that. "So, Taehyung, where have you been all lunch?" Taehyung sat back and tried to remember.

"I was just in the music block working on…something." He had almost forgotten that Jungkook was there and let slip about the song he had been writing for him. Jungkook didn't ask, thankfully. "Also Namjoon asked me if I wanted to join this project that Hoseok started. I think it's like songwriting or something." Jimin smiled, impressed and Jungkook looked at him with those eyes that made Taehyung want to claim him, just like his dream. It was not helping that he was flapping his shirt to keep him cool and Taehyung could clearly see his perfectly toned muscles underneath his uniform.

"Hyung, you can write songs? That's so cool!" Taehyung blushed, invisible to the others, and swore he was going to kill the kid if he got a hyung kink out of this. "Can I hear one?" Taehyung was about to think of some excuse before he realised that he wanted Jungkook to hear his song more than anything. But it wasn't finished. He remembered the lyrics sheet he had in his pocket, untitled and totally free of any mention of Jungkook.

"No, it's too hot to sing properly. Hell, I can barely breathe." Jungkook pouted and Taehyung smiled and offered, "You can have the lyrics, though, I-I don't mind." He handed the paper to Jungkook, who took it gratefully. Jungkook rested his head on Taehyung's shoulder and, although it made his body temperature skyrocket, he let him. It was hard not to wrap his arms around his shoulders or lace his fingers through his hair and Taehyung thanked the stars that Jimin was there.

Jungkook read in silence and Taehyung waited anxiously for the verdict. He watched as Jungkook's eyes found his own and his admiring, awe-filled gaze said everything that needed to be said. Just in time, too, as the bell rang after mere seconds of the silent exchange. Taehyung genuinely thought the bell had something against him. They turned off their phones and left into the cool air of the corridors and went to their separate classes. Sort of.

Jimin left for his History class up the stairs and Taehyung, sure that Jungkook had followed, cursed under his breath before he felt a hand brush against his arm. It was Jungkook, looking less sure of himself than he had done earlier. Maybe Taehyung wasn't the only one who relied on Jimin for confidence. Taehyung pushed the thought away when Jungkook started talking.

"Hyung, that was…it was really beautiful. I-I didn't know you could write like that." He sounded a bit shaken and Taehyung wondered if he'd accidentally left Jungkook's name on the paper before realising that it was probably just the heat. Taehyung acted very casually (and it was acting at that point) and replied,

"Me neither, I guess. I don't…I'm not good at telling people my actual feelings, so writing it down in flowery words was actually kind of nice. It's not finished yet, but it will be; I don't want to give it up." Taehyung took the paper back from Jungkook's outstretched hand and walked with him until he disappeared into a classroom. Taehyung kept walking but didn't go to his class. He went to the bathroom and locked himself in one of the stalls. He turned his back to the door and slid to the ground. He cried, not really knowing why. He just cried.

After missing just under half of his lesson, Taehyung stood up and fixed his hair and makeup before leaving to join his class. He knew he still looked awful and he didn't have an excuse for being gone for such a long time, but he didn't care. He just wanted to go home, see his dog, eat dinner and go to bed, just like in middle school. Was that really too much to ask?

Taehyung walked into his classroom and slunk onto his seat, acting as if he hadn't been gone for the better part of 25 minutes. He earned some strange looks from his classmates, but no one spoke to him or said anything. _Good_. Two more lessons passed and he didn't talk during either of them. A handful of people asked if he was okay, noticing something missing from his usual goofy self, but he just nodded and they left him alone. Only when he was on the bus with Jimin did he finally say something.

"I can't do this anymore. I can't deal with him. It's too hard and he's killing me." Jimin was speechless and for the second time that week, no words needed nor wanted to be said and they sat in silence, just enjoying each other's company and support. Jimin smiled at him as he got up and Taehyung genuinely smiled back before going home.


	29. Chapter 27 - JM

**_27 – JM focus_**

Jimin heard Jungkook's little idea and was slightly taken aback. He was expecting him to jump up and down with glee before running as fast as he could to tell Taehyung he loved him. But that didn't happen. Jungkook wanted to play – to stall, maybe? Jimin was confused but he decided to play along.

"That sounds like a lot of fun, but you've got to promise you'll only do it when I'm around. I don't want him majorly freaking out or anything and this has been hard on him too, you know." Jungkook nodded and Jimin watched as the games unfolded. Jungkook was being overly assertive and Taehyung looked both uncomfortable and delighted at the same time. Jimin was happy for his two friends until he got on the bus and saw Taehyung.

The boy had clearly been crying. Some attempt had been made to clean up his make-up, but his eyes were red and swollen. He looked dejected and tired and done with everything. He slumped beside Jimin and said,

"I can't do this anymore. I can't deal with him. It's too hard and he's killing me." Okay. So maybe Jungkook's game hadn't been the best idea even with Jimin there. Jimin wanted to explain but he couldn't bring himself to tell his best friend that he had had a part in this. So they sat and let each other's presence speak for them. Taehyung smiled back at him when he got up to leave and Jimin felt guilty. He didn't like it.

He got up and walked over to where Yoongi was sitting, staring at his phone. He looked up briefly and smirked before looking back down. Jimin slid next to him and said,

"I need a favour." Yoongi looked adamant on not raising suspicion but replied with,

"Anything." Jimin smiled at the contrast between Yoongi's outward self and his heart. Jimin asked,

"Do you have Jungkook's number? I never asked him for it." Jimin watched as Yoongi started scrolling through his phone and landed on Jungkook's contact details. Jimin copied it down quickly into his phone and smiled.

"Thanks. By the way, I never said this yesterday, but don't ever pull me off a bus again. My mom was freaking out and I missed dinner." Yoongi still wasn't looking at him but smirked again.

"No regrets." Jimin was going to object but realised that he didn't regret that day either, so he sat back and said nothing. When Yoongi's stop rolled around, the older boy got up and said,

"See you tomorrow, Chim," and left. Jimin smiled after him, even though he knew they probably wouldn't even speak the next day. It was a weird relationship and he didn't quite know how to deal with it, but at least it was a relationship.

He dropped his bag in his room and lay down for a second, thanking God that he didn't have dance that day either. He took out his phone and started texting Jungkook.

_Hey, its Jimin. Look u need to stop w the games bc u sorta broke Tae. Just tell him bc he's suffering here and I don't like it. _Jimin wasn't expecting a reply any time soon, but it seemed that Jungkook spent too much time on his phone.

_I broke *him*? Hell, I think I broke myself tbh I regret that sm. I want to tell him but I can't idk y. ill try tho, _was the reply. At least Jungkook felt just as bad. Jimin knew he really should be studying but there was a drama that needed taking care of. Before he could do anything else, however, he received another text from an unknown number. It read:

_Hi Jimin, it's Namjoon. Hoseok gave me ur number and I was wondering if you wanted to join in this project he started. Ik ur voice is rlly nice so do you want to come and sing for me just to see how ur voice works? Taehyung's coming as well I think. _So this was that project that Taehyung was talking about. But he had to think carefully. If this was happening at some lunchtime, he couldn't leave Jungkook by himself, especially now that he was going to confess. So there was only one option.

_Yh I'd love to! Can I bring my friend? Trust me his vocals r way better than mine but he's kinda shy, _he said, praying for a positive response.

_Idk, 4 vocalists might be a bit unbalanced. Do u know any rappers by any chance?_ Jimin had no idea if Jungkook could rap, but he was good at everything else, so he could probably give it a shot. Then he had another idea. He thought back to the fast-paced music always leaking out of Yoongi's earphones and the times he had heard him whispering snippets of quick-fire lyrics. He was about to ask before he remembered that he wasn't even supposed to know Yoongi.

_I think my friend can rap but idk you might wanna ask like Min Yoongi or something I swear I've heard him rap b4, _Jimin replied and hoped it didn't sound too suspicious.

_K thanks._ Probably not then. Jimin got up and switched on his desk lamp. He was ready to start studying like there was no tomorrow again when he remembered he still needed Jungkook's permission. He opened Jungkook's contact again and typed,

_Also, brush up on your singing/rapping ur coming w me and Tae to Namjoon's song club or wtvr it is. _Jimin didn't wait for a response because it wasn't a question.

He remembered the state that Taehyung left in. Jimin wouldn't ask him about it because he didn't trust himself not to let something slip. So instead, he turned his phone back on and opened Taehyung's chat.

_Tae, Namjoon invited me to that song thing you talked abt. You still in? _Jimin knew he wouldn't get an immediate response, but he would have one by the morning. He put his phone down and opened his books, trying not to think about that day.

The next day, Jimin awoke at 6 am and left for school not long afterwards. When Taehyung got on the bus, Jimin saw that he did look better, but still a down. Jimin smiled.

"Hey, how you doing?" Taehyung just exhaled in reply. They talked for a while before Jimin said, "Look, you really need to tell him; this is getting out of hand. Who knows, he might like you back. I mean, it worked with me and you-know-who." Taehyung suddenly looked angry and Jimin realised that he did not get any sleep and was probably still shaken from the day before.

"Jimin, I don't give a fuck about you and Yoongi," he fumed, maybe a little bit too loudly and a few people looked in their direction, including Min Yoongi himself. Jimin glared at Taehyung to tell him to shut his mouth but it was too late. A few more heads were turned when Yoongi spoke,

"Hey, nerd, what did you say about me?" They had gained a small audience who waited for Taehyung's answer. Taehyung smiled, looking surprisingly confident, and stood up. He repeated,

"I said I don't give a fuck about you and Jimin," Jimin wanted badly for them both to shut the hell up, but he was too engrossed in the argument. Yoongi remained calm and stood up to face Taehyung. He was shorter but intimidating.

"What the fuck are you even talking about, you weirdo? I gave him a lift like once because I didn't want to talk to my dad. Anyway, I thought you were the one fucking him, don't drag me into this weird fucking triangle you've got with that random 1st grader." Jimin knew he was lying. He was acting. But those words cut right through him. The whole bus was staring at them waiting for Taehyung to reply. But Taehyung didn't get to reply.

"Fuck off, Yoongi, just leave him alone and leave Jungkook out of this, we all know you're soft for him anyway." Jimin was surprised at the malice laced into his own words, but his anger clouded his conscience. A few oohs came from the surrounding students. Yoongi huffed,

"Excuse me? You're really accusing me of being soft for that twink? He's a fucking lunatic! Just go back to your boyfriend and stop bringing me into your fucking mess of a three-way." All eyes turned back to Jimin as he stood up and walked over to Yoongi, whose eyes changed from secretly apologetic to confused. "What the fuck do you think you're doing?" Jimin smiled and made full eye contact with Yoongi.

"You told me to go to my boyfriend," he said and Yoongi smirked at him as if to say, _do you really want to go there?_ Yoongi pushed at his chest and Jimin stumbled backwards slightly.

"Ew, in your fucking dreams, fag." Low. "Why the fuck am I even part of this? I didn't do anything to you." Sure. Jimin cocked his head to the side.

"I know, you only made out with me twice, I'm being so unfair," Jimin smirked and Yoongi looked genuinely furious. The audience gasped and Taehyung piped back up,

"Step right up and see Min Yoongi in full-blown gay panic mode!" A few people laughed; others were scared to. Jimin wasn't.

"Come on, Yoongi, scared to admit you love me?" The bus slowed down as it approached the school and Yoongi's friends looked amongst themselves before shoving past Yoongi and walking out of the door. Yoongi stayed silent while the rest of the students tore their eyes away from the scene to go to school. Yoongi looked up at Jimin, anger dulled.

"You don't know what you've done."


	30. Chapter 28 - SJ

**_28 – SJ focus_**

The day was not off to a flying start. Hoseok texted him saying he'd arranged for him to meet with Namjoon at lunch. Seokjin wasn't entirely sure what he was mad at, but he was still mad. On top of that, there had been an incident on the bus that Seokjin was not looking forward to dealing with. He was a little shocked that a member of the basketball team had just been outed by a 2nd grader and his friend, but he was more annoyed at the fact that he was going to have to do one talk about spreading rumours, one about acceptance, one about bullying and have to sit in the same classroom as Yoongi for about three lessons. That was not going to be fun.

To make things worse, Namjoon was always on his mind and Seokjin was beginning to get infuriated that he was playing so hard to get. It wasn't as if Seokjin had any time to play games; most nights, he got 2 and a half hours of sleep. If he wasn't such a naturally light-hearted human being, he was sure he would've cracked by then. Namjoon kept him sane and made him want to go insane at the same time. Seokjin ran a hand through his light brown hair and sighed. Hoseok had said he wanted to tell him something and he seemed excited about it. Seokjin waited impatiently for him to talk and his heart skipped at the news. This was going to be one hell of a day.


	31. Chapter 29 - YG

**_29 – YG perspective_**

"I don't give a fuck about you and Yoongi." I snapped my head around to the voice and my eyes landed on Taehyung. What the hell was he doing? I was prepared to let it go when I realised that other people had heard it as well. I had to keep up appearances.

"Hey, nerd, what did you say about me?" I was expecting him to just apologise and let it go after he realised he'd made a mistake. That was not what happened. He stood up to face me.

"I said I don't give a fuck about you and Jimin." So he was playing that game. I just wanted to ignore him, to get Jimin and shut him up completely. But I couldn't. I had a reputation to uphold and, apparently, an audience to please. They were expecting a response and I gave them one. I stood.

"What the fuck are you even talking about, weirdo? I gave him a lift like once because I didn't want to talk to my dad. Anyway, I thought you were the one fucking him, don't drag me into this weird fucking triangle you've got with that random 1st grader." I saw the amusement in the eyes of the spectators and prepared to sit back down when Jimin spoke. I saw that his eyes were full of anger and pain and I silently tried to tell him that I didn't mean any of it, but he continued.

"Fuck off, Yoongi, leave him alone and leave Jungkook out of this, we all know you're soft for him anyway." There was no way I was losing. Jimin wanted to go. Then we would fucking go.

"Excuse me? You're seriously accusing me of being soft for that twink? He's a fucking lunatic! Just go back to your boyfriend and stop bringing me into your fucking mess of a three-way." Jimin stormed up to me and I had no idea what he was going to do. "What the fuck do you think you're doing?" He smiled and I was faintly afraid, but it was overwhelmed by anger.

"You told me to go to my boyfriend." He was really going there? The whole bus was silent and I smirked slightly. I shoved him away from me and he tripped backwards a few steps.

"Ew, in your dreams, fag." It hurt to call him names, but I didn't have a choice. "Why the fuck am I even part of this? I didn't do anything to you." Not entirely true. I mean, I literally just pushed him. He looked at me and I saw him fight with me to regain control.

"I know, you only made out with me twice, I'm being so unfair." He could have walked away. He could have dropped it and I would have apologised and it would have been fine. But he kept pushing me and he just didn't stop. Taehyung taunted,

"Step right up and see Min Yoongi in full-blown gay panic mode." Okay if they didn't stop someone was going to get hurt and I wasn't entirely sure it would be one of them. Jimin took a step forward and smiled maliciously.

"Come on, Yoongi, scared to admit you love me?" _YES_. Obviously, you prick. The bus slowed to a halt and my friends shoved me out of the way to get to the door. Great. Thanks, Jimin.

"You don't know what you've done," I said calmly and walked off the bus. I prayed that it had just been a dream. Jimin hadn't just outed me in front of nearly sixty people. That couldn't have happened. But it did.

The first lesson was hellish. People were staring at me and I stared back. Apparently, I still had some power left since it made them look away awkwardly. I needed to get out. The bell rang for the end of period 1 and the corridors filled with students. I stormed straight to Jimin's English classroom, the time to think having made me furious. He was chatting to Taehyung on the way to his next class not far from me. My vision blurred red. I barged through and grabbed him by the wrist, making sure to dig my nails into his skin.

He tried to protest and I didn't listen. People cleared a path for me to drag him through. I turned a corner sharply and felt him hit a wall. He cried out in pain and I smiled, remembering that teachers didn't care enough to monitor the hallways. I stopped and pushed him into the bathroom door. He fell against it and I gripped his shirt and pushed him into the bathroom. I turned to the people behind me.

"I swear to God, you let Taehyung in here and I will personally skin you," I told them and they nodded, terrified. I knew they would direct him somewhere else if he came looking for Jimin any time soon. I turned around and walked into the bathroom. Jimin was on the floor. His elbow was bleeding, his wrist was scratched and he was crying. I felt some hint of remorse, but I ignored it.

"You wanna fucking explain yourself?" I hissed and he angrily swiped at his eyes. He stood up, shaking.

"No! You first!" He was like a kid. I rolled my eyes.

"Me? I was acting, Jimin! Do you seriously think I meant any of what I said? I know that Jungkook likes Taehyung and, I'm not totally blind, I know that Taehyung likes him back. I didn't want to go there, but he pushed me. And I don't know what the hell you were thinking jumping in – you knew that you could ruin me and you didn't even fucking hesitate! You didn't show me mercy, so why the fuck should I show you any?" I felt tears escape my eyes and heard my voice crack as I yelled.

Jimin didn't speak and I suspected that he couldn't. I breathed heavily. "That's what I thought." I walked up to him and shoved him as hard as I could into the wall. He hit it with enough force to wind him completely and he fell to the ground sobbing and gasping in pain, trying to speak but failing. Then I realised what I'd done. I had really hurt him and I just wanted him to stop crying. Yeah, he fucked up, but I did too. Maybe not as bad but I still made a mistake.

I was crying a little bit more as I fell to my knees next to him. He tried to push me away but he didn't have the strength. I whispered, "I'm sorry, Jimin, I'm so sorry," and I kissed him gently. He looked up at me with red, streaming eyes before kissing me back. We were both a little bit broken by this and I just wanted to stay there holding him until he stopped crying.

From outside the door, I heard someone mutter, "Those fucking liars," before it slammed open and Taehyung strode angrily into the bathroom. Reluctantly, I let Jimin go and stood up. His hand found mine as he sniffled from the floor. I looked at Taehyung apologetically and he glared back. Before he could speak, I said,

"I'm sorry, Taehyung, I didn't mean any of what I said. I was just scared of being found out but I guess you did me a favour. And I'm sorry I keep doing this to Jimin. He doesn't deserve it." Taehyung walked up to me and slapped me hard in the face. Fairs.

"You're damn right he doesn't deserve it!" he shouted. Jimin pulled himself up beside me but I held him back. Taehyung looked at me in silence. My cheek stung painfully and but I didn't feel any anger towards him. Then he hugged me. "I'm sorry, Yoongi," I mumbled another apology and he let go. I caught sight of our reflections in the mirror and couldn't help but laugh.

"Jesus Christ, we're a bunch of hot messes." The other two looked over themselves and laughed as well. We took the time to clean ourselves up and, once I made thoroughly sure Jimin didn't need to go to the medical room for his elbow, we left for our respective classes.


	32. Chapter 30 - RM

**_30 – RM focus_**

Min Yoongi looked an absolute state but, having heard what had gone on that morning, Namjoon said nothing. Instead, he called his name and Yoongi looked around, clearly anticipating some sort of confrontation.

"Do you want to come to the music block at lunch? I need another rapper and I hear you aren't bad," he said and Yoongi relaxed. A smile flicked on the corners of his mouth.

"I'm really not that good. I could give it a shot, though, I need to take my mind off…well, everything, really." He was more chill about the morning than Namjoon had expected. He hadn't been there, but the story had spread quickly that Min Yoongi had been secretly closeted and dating Park Jimin. Namjoon didn't know whether they were cool with each other since they would see each other at lunch, but if Seokjin was there then he could diffuse the tension. He was a born peacemaker. It was one of the many things Namjoon admired about him.

In his next lesson, he sat next to Hoseok. He was rattling off details about some story and Namjoon shut him up to tell him about his project.

"So, you know how you just wanted it to be me and Seokjin?" Hoseok nodded. "Well, the thing is, there's like four other people coming now." Hoseok looked faux-outraged and pouted,

"What? What about your date?" Namjoon rolled his eyes and Hoseok smiled, "Who are the others?"

"Min Yoongi, Kim Taehyung and Park Jimin who said he was bringing a friend but I never asked for the name." Hoseok clapped his hands excitedly.

"Ooh, I bet it's Jeon Jungkook! He's got such a nice voice, he showed me once. He's a little shy, but I think we can fix that," he said and Namjoon found himself weirdly excited for that lunchtime.

Finally, it rolled around and Namjoon waited for the others to arrive. Seokjin walked in first and Namjoon greeted him, trying not to blush. Hoseok came in next and winked at Namjoon. Yoongi entered followed closely by Taehyung and Jimin who was dragging Jungkook. They sat in a circle.

"Okay," Namjoon started, "I say we all introduce ourselves. I'm Kim Namjoon, 3rd grade. I'm a rapper, writer and producer. He gestured to Taehyung who was next to him.

"I'm Kim Taehyung, 2nd grade. I like rapping but it's not really my strong suit. I'm a vocalist and a writer, I guess."

"I'm Jeon Jungkook, 1st grade. I can sing and rap, but not brilliantly. I can practise, though."

"I'm Park Jimin, 2nd grade. I sing, but I really can't rap to save my life."

"I'm Min Yoongi, 3rd grade. I can rap, I guess and I'm not bad at writing."

"I'm Jung Hoseok, 3rd grade. I sing sometimes, but rapping's my strong suit over anything."

"I'm Kim Seokjin, 3rd grade. I can sing and write a little bit, but not as confidently as I'd like to."

After the introductions, they began to see what each other could do. Taehyung and Jungkook complimented each other beautifully and Jungkook really was quite good at rapping as well. Seokjin was glorious as always and Jimin could hit high notes like you wouldn't believe. Hoseok had a really cool blend of rapping and singing that was very impressive. As it turned out, Yoongi was freaking incredible at rapping and left everyone speechless. Namjoon felt that they could work very well together.

"So," said Jungkook, "what should we write about?" Namjoon thought for a minute.

"I don't want it to get too gentle. I'm thinking something with a strong beat and probably quite heavy. So for a concept, probably…do you all know that feeling of being in love but the other person not liking you back?" Everyone looked between themselves and nodded.

"Do you have anything in mind? It might be easier if we don't start from scratch," suggested Seokjin and Namjoon immediately started searching through his phone to find something. He found what he was looking for and hoped it wasn't too personal.

"Um…right, okay, can someone give me a beat?" Immediately, Hoseok started beatboxing and it was actually pretty impressive. Namjoon took a breath,

"_You make me so angry and mad for no reason/ I'm serious but you make me into a loser, who picks fights with you/ Why do I care so much about you? / You're making a big boy act like a little kid/ But I'll turn things around/ From just knowing each other to becoming lovers/_ _If it's with you, I think I can go to a good college/ ABCDEFGH Hakuna Matata/ Your profile picture is the same but why do I keep checking it? / But don't misunderstand, I'm not an easy guy._"

He stopped and everyone applauded, impressed. "I'm thinking probably a pre-chorus after that and then have the real vocals come in. Does that sound like something we can work with?" Everyone nodded. "Cool. It's nearly the end of lunch, so I guess I'll see you tomorrow. I'll start working on the beat if I have time." Everyone packed up and left. Almost.

"That was really cool. It's so impressive that you can write like that," commented Seokjin and Namjoon reddened at the compliment. Seokjin didn't need to know it was about him. Namjoon muttered thanks and Seokjin walked up to him. "Do you mind if I ask who it's about?" Namjoon panicked slightly.

"Um, it's not- it isn't...I mean n-nobody, really," he stammered and Seokjin smiled.

"Nobody? I'm offended that you think so little of me." Holy shit. How did he know?

"I-I, um…what?" Seokjin laughed.

"Come on, I'm sick of our little game, Namjoon. I want you for real now." Namjoon stared for a second before snapping into rational thought.

"God, yes," he said and moved closer to Seokjin. He stroked back the older boy's pretty, brown hair and looked deep into his dark eyes. "You don't know how long I've wanted this." He gently connected their lips and it was everything he ever dreamed. Seokjin placed his hand on the back of Namjoon's neck, pulling him closer. Namjoon wrapped his arms around Seokjin's waist and didn't ever want to let go. He bravely slipped his tongue over his lover's lips and _felt_ him moan.

Namjoon wanted to shoot the fucking bell when it went off again. Seokjin smiled and pulled away. "We are so making a petition to get rid of that thing." He intertwined his fingers with Namjoon and pulled him out of the practice room.


	33. Chapter 31 - JK

**_31 – JK focus_**

Jungkook walked out of the practice room feeling quite proud of himself. He had not only managed to sit in a room with people he didn't know, but he had managed to rap and sing in front of them as well. He was listening to Min Yoongi recount the events of that morning that Jungkook had heard so much about. He was apologising but Jungkook wasn't insulted. He hadn't meant it, so it was fine.

"So that was my morning," Yoongi finished telling him the events in the bathroom and Jungkook felt like he had been on a very emotional rollercoaster, "How's your crush going?" Jungkook panicked for a second, afraid that Taehyung had heard, but he was wrapped in a conversation with Jimin in front of them. Jungkook smiled slightly.

"Um…it's okay I guess. You really helped on the weekend, so thank you for that. I keep staring at him all the time though and I'm scared he's going to notice. Jimin wants me to tell him, but I'm not sure." Yoongi rolled his eyes and ruffled Jungkook's hair.

"Why not, idiot? You do know he likes you back, right?" Jungkook whipped his head up.

"Wait, you knew as well? Did he tell you?"

"No, he's just really bad at hiding it. But you know he likes you and you still won't tell him?" Jungkook knew he was right.

"That's what Jimin said as well."

"Jimin has a point," Yoongi said and Jimin turned around at the mention of his name. He looked at Jungkook and gestured to Taehyung. They had been talking about him, apparently. Jungkook blushed and nodded reluctantly. He was going to have to do this eventually and Jungkook thought he would rather get it over with. But the bell rang. He was very literally saved by the bell.

Jungkook was torn in a different direction to Taehyung and wanted nothing more than to go back and be with him again, just for a few moments. He sat in the rest of his classes bored and annoyed that he wasn't just a year older. His final class ended a few minutes late and Jungkook was already in a bad mood. A bad mood that dissolved completely when he saw Taehyung waiting outside the door. He waited to be dismissed and practically sprinted across the room to leave.

Taehyung didn't say anything, he just walked with Jungkook for a minute, seemingly lost in thought. Jungkook looked at him, wondering how a god like Taehyung could have possibly fallen for a kid like him. Finally, he looked up and said,

"Jungkook-ah, I need to tell you something," he was smiling, but he looked nervous. Jungkook didn't dare to hope what he thought would come next. He just looked at Taehyung inquisitively and let him speak.

"With everything that's been happening with Yoongi and Jimin, I haven't had a lot of time to think about myself and maybe at times, I've been using them as a distraction so I wouldn't have to think about myself. But I do know that whenever I try to think about myself or how I feel, something, well, someone gets in the way and I just end up thinking about them instead. Because they're beautiful and kind and warm and cute and funny and caring. And that feels really weird to say because they're also standing next to me right now."

Taehyung locked eyes with him and Jungkook wanted to cry.

"You haven't made this easy for me, Kookie, but I know that isn't your fault. You didn't mean to make me fall in love with you but I did. I fell hard and fast for you and I'm still falling. I don't know where that leaves us as friends and I'd understand if you just wanted to stay away from me for now." They were approaching the end of the walk and Jungkook had an idea.

Heart thudding in his chest, he held Taehyung's hand and pulled him towards the bunch of trees that lined the gate around the school. He ducked behind a tree and suddenly, no-one could see them anymore. They were hidden and alone. Jungkook could see Taehyung shaking gently and moved closer.

"It's alright, Tae. I love you too," he said and placed his arms around Taehyung's neck. The older boy's hands settled around his waist like an instinctive reaction and they looked deep into each other's eyes, their hidden feelings no longer clouding their love for each other. Taehyung's eyes flicked over Jungkook's face as if he was trying to take in every detail of him. "Is this okay?" Jungkook asked, still somehow unsure of himself. Taehyung smiled gently.

"Yes, God yes, it's just…I want to do this right." Slowly, he moved closer and Jungkook closed his eyes, savouring everything about the moment. Finally, after so many weeks of torture, Taehyung kissed him and pure bliss sank into Jungkook's body, throwing him into a trance, making him focus only on Taehyung's body and his own. He threaded his fingers through the orange hair that had tempted him for so long and pushed himself closer to Taehyung. A tongue slipped briefly into his mouth and Jungkook moaned slightly and returned the favour. Hands were roaming freely over his back and hugged him closer to Taehyung's strong, warm body.

A ringtone from Taehyung's blazer broke them apart. Jungkook prayed he would just ignore it but he didn't. He pulled away and they stared at each other, out of breath, before Taehyung reached into his blazer to turn off his phone. He declined the call but looked apologetic.

"Dammit, that was Jimin. He's probably wondering where the fuck I am. I'm sorry, Kookie, we have to go or we'll miss the bus." Jungkook smiled, still completely high, and nodded.

"I know, it's fine. Let's go, then," they emerged from the trees and tried not to raise the suspicions of the people still walking down the drive. Jungkook was playing back the last few minutes for the rest of the walk and nothing needed to be said. Except for one thing that Jungkook noticed.

"Your ringtone…hold on, don't tell me," Jungkook smiled as he recognised the song. "Is that…is that My Oh My by Girl's Generation?" Taehyung smiled and said,

"Okay, you know that song too so you can be quiet." Jungkook folded his arms.

"Make me," he watched as Taehyung looked around briefly before kissing him quickly on the lips. He turned around to see the last call for his bus.

"That worked well enough, I think. See you tomorrow Jungkook!" He left and Jungkook got on his bus thinking about nothing else except Taehyung. He was so ready to say goodbye to the frustration of having a crush. He wanted to get rid of all the anger and frustration of dreaming about something he couldn't have and replace it with the satisfaction of knowing he could have whatever he wanted. Because all he wanted was Taehyung.

His phone buzzed and he opened the text. It was from Jimin. It read:

_Good job Kook, you found yourself a total catch. Take care of him okay? _Jungkook smiled and replied,

_He'll be fine as long as he's got both of us._ Jungkook smiled at the overwhelming truth of what he had written. He put in his earphones and almost laughed out loud at the first song that came on his shuffle. He looked out the window and mouthed silently along to My Oh My by Girl's Generation.


	34. Chapter 32 - V

**_32 – V focus_**

He was talking to Jimin perfectly casually when he left the practice room when suddenly, Jimin said,

"Tae, you have to confess. You know this is killing you, just tell him, okay?" Taehyung rolled his eyes and flicked a glance back at Jungkook who was talking to Yoongi.

"I don't want to…" he saw Jimin's stern expression and changed his mind. "Fine, I'll try." Jimin smiled with pride then turned around when he heard his name being called. Taehyung was lost in his mind. He was scared of what Jungkook would say; if he would reject him and not be his friend anymore. But he couldn't put it off and he definitely couldn't lie. He would just have to say the truth and if Jungkook couldn't handle it, then that was that.

The final three lessons of the day dragged like hell. Each minute seemed almost an hour long and Taehyung was becoming restless. He had promised Jimin he would tell so he had to. The last class finished slightly early and Taehyung ran out of the room and down to Jungkook's classroom. He swore that the teacher had something against him since Jungkook got let out at least a minute late.

And then Jungkook was by his side again. Where he should be. He mumbled a greeting and tried to think of the best way to go about this. They were already outside by the time he started to talk. He had given up on hoping for a positive response and tried not to focus on the negative ones. He admired Jungkook's patience as he let Taehyung speak.

"With everything that's been happening with Yoongi and Jimin, I haven't had a lot of time to think about myself and maybe at times, I've been using them as a distraction so I wouldn't have to think about myself. But I do know that whenever I try to think about myself or how I feel, something, well, someone gets in the way and I just end up thinking about them instead. Because they're beautiful and kind and warm and cute and funny and caring. And that feels really weird to say because they're also standing next to me right now."

Taehyung locked eyes with Jungkook and tried to gauge his reaction through the slightest movements. But it seemed impossible to read him. So he kept going.

"You haven't made this easy for me, Kookie, but I know that isn't your fault. You didn't mean to make me fall in love with you but I did. I fell hard and fast for you and I'm still falling. I don't know where that leaves us as friends and I'd understand if you just wanted to stay away from me for now." He didn't care if Jungkook was totally fine and just wanted to be friends. But either way to either extreme of not being friends was what he was most concerned about.

Suddenly, he was being pulled to the side and found himself looking straight at Jungkook, who was smiling slightly.

"It's alright, Tae. I love you, too." His hands wrapped around Taehyung's neck and Taehyung's hands instinctively fell around Jungkook's waist as if they were always meant to be there. He stared deeply into the brown eyes that had haunted him for far too long and time slowed down as he couldn't think of anything else but the boy in front of him. "Is this okay?" Oh, it was more than okay. It was everything Taehyung wanted. He snapped himself back to reality long enough to answer.

"Yes, God yes, it's just…I want to do this right." Taehyung relaxed and let his intuition work for him. He leaned in and finally, he kissed Jeon Jungkook. It was everything he had dreamed, but this time it was real. Jungkook' lips were soft and welcoming and his hands were laced in his hair. Taehyung pressed Jungkook closer, never wanting to let him go for another second. He slid his tongue over Jungkook's lips and got the moan he had been yearning to hear since what felt like forever. Jungkook flicked his tongue over Taehyung's and Taehyung shuddered.

Taehyung was going to stab Jimin. His ringtone emitted from Taehyung's blazer and Taehyung wanted nothing more than to ignore it. But it was Jimin and he couldn't. He reluctantly let go of Jungkook and took out his phone. If he hung up, then at least Jimin would know he had seen it and wouldn't worry incessantly about him missing the bus. Which he was probably going to miss at that rate. He looked at Jungkook and was once more hypnotised by his dark gaze.

"Dammit, that was Jimin. He's probably wondering where the fuck I am. I'm sorry, Kookie, we have to go or we'll miss the bus." Jungkook smiled his adorable bunny smile and Taehyung knew just how love worked.

"I know, it's fine. Let's go, then," he said and they walked quickly back onto the path, ignoring the weird looks they got from the other students. They walked in silence and Taehyung wondered if that had all just been a dream. It seemed so incredibly unlikely that Jungkook actually loved him back and Taehyung had spent so long wondering that the answer didn't seem real.

They were nearing the crowded bus stops when Jungkook said,

"Your ringtone…hold on, don't tell me," Taehyung watched him think and really didn't expect him to get it. "Is that…My Oh My by Girl's Generation?" Wow, Jungkook knew his girl groups. Taehyung didn't take him as a fan of trashy k-pop, but he supposed that Jungkook was full of surprises.

"Okay, you know that song too, so you can be quiet," he smiled when he sensed teasing. Jungkook folded his arms and squared up.

"Make me." Taehyung watched to see if anyone was watching (they weren't) and glimpsed the final call for his bus. He kissed Jungkook lightly and said,

"That worked well enough I think," he had learned a new trick. "See you tomorrow, Jungkook!" he turned around and ran to the bus door before it closed. He saw Jimin watch him as he walked down the centre aisle and sit down.

"You hung up on me." Jimin pouted and Taehyung smiled.

"I'm very sorry but I was a little bit busy." Jimin rolled his eyes but smiled back,

"Doing what?" Taehyung laughed internally at the set-up.

"Jungkook." Jimin squealed and hugged him.

"Tae, I'm so proud of you! I mean, that explains why your hair is in such a state, you had your first kiss!" Jimin said excitedly, fixing Taehyung's hair. Taehyung laughed,

"Yeah, a kiss that was very rudely interrupted by Girl's Generation." Jimin's eyes widened and he laughed shyly.

"I'm sorry, you were late and I didn't know where you were. How was I supposed to know you were getting off with Jungkook?" Taehyung was about to shush him when he realised that he didn't need to keep it a secret anymore. A voice spoke behind them.

"In all fairness, you stormed in on me and Jimin in the bathroom this morning," Jimin and Taehyung spun around to see Yoongi sitting behind them by himself on his phone with his earphones in. He wasn't even looking at them. "What? I've got no other friends anymore. You're very lucky I'm a damn good shooting guard or none of those pricks would ever speak to me again. Not that I'm complaining, of course, they were going to find out eventually." Jimin smiled and Taehyung felt so happy for both of them. Yoongi wasn't ashamed of himself anymore and Jimin had gotten the guy he wanted. Taehyung thought back to the morning that felt such a long time ago and their fight with Yoongi. It had all been forgiven and forgotten.


	35. Chapter 33 - YG

**_33 – YG perspective_**

I stepped onto the bus for the first time in well over a week. It was the first day after the Christmas holidays and I hadn't seen Jimin at all. I missed him. But there he was, sitting in his usual seat by the window. I smiled at him and he smiled back and got up to wrap his arms around my neck, pulling me closer. I hugged him back tightly, just happy to see him again.

I sat behind him like always and we talked about our holidays and families until Taehyung arrived. He sat next to Jimin and they hugged. We may have had our differences in the past, but Taehyung and I were far better friends than either of us had anticipated. We were talking and laughing all the way to school and by the time we got there, Jungkook was waiting for us at the gate. Taehyung sprang off the bus first, eager to see his boyfriend again. They hugged and kissed as Jimin and I held hands and walked next to them like proud parents.

"Yoongi-hyung, have you been practising?" Jungkook asked. I had been and I showed them my verse nearly perfectly. Our song that we were writing with the others was almost complete and only the finishing touches needed to be added. It was a really fun project and all seven of us were firm friends. Seokjin and Namjoon were a couple, even though they hadn't admitted it to us yet. Hoseok had told us all he had a surprise for us and to meet him in the sports hall that lunch instead of the music block.

We parted to go to our different lessons and I marvelled at how much easier the subjects seemed now that my head was clearer. Lunch rolled around and Namjoon, Seokjin and I met Jungkook on our way to meet Jimin and Taehyung outside their classroom. We walked to the sports hall, speculating wild theories about what the surprise could be. These theories ranged from a wedding ceremony for Namjin (a ship name that I was proud to take the credit for) to a birthday party for Taehyung, whose birthday fell inside the holidays.

Hoseok was in his dance clothes and all of us except for Jimin looked uneasy. He smiled brightly at us and said,

"I have had all vacation to do this and I think I've got some killer choreography down for this. But it's designed for seven people so all of you need to be committed to this." Five of us groaned and Hoseok pouted "Hey, I have been committed to all of you since you all started. I locked Taekook in a cupboard, I managed to make Yoongi talk to Jimin for the first time ever and don't even get me started on Namjin, you guys were exhausting!" Everyone laughed except for Taehyung and Jungkook. Jungkook looked very confused and said,

"First of all, Taekook?" We all nodded in appreciation for that name. "Secondly, _you_ locked us in the equipment cupboard?!" We all laughed louder. Seokjin giggled,

"You didn't know it was him?" Taehyung and Jungkook were staring at Hoseok, who shrugged,

"Hey, that plan made Yoonmin _and_ Taekook happen, so I think I knew what I was doing." After that, we decided to concentrate and run through the song. Namjoon hooked his phone up to his speaker and the track, slightly more developed that we had heard before, began to play.

We ran it through without a hitch. Taehyung's raspy, deep voice was really improving and my angel was on point with his high notes. When we finished, Hoseok beamed.

"Please, can I teach you to dance? It would go so well!" I was the least enthusiastic, but even I caved eventually. He told us that we needed to be energetic and to really go for it. I didn't want to, but I also didn't want to let any of my friends down. So Hoseok taught us the first verse of choreography. It was more fun than I was expecting and I ended up really enjoying myself. I didn't tell anyone that, of course.

Over the weeks, we slowly learned more of the dance until we could sing it through and dance at the same time. It was after we were all lying on the floor after a full run through that I realised something.

"Hey, we don't have a name. Like a real group name. What would it be?" Everyone thought for a while. Hoseok piped up first.

"What about…Heungtan Sonyeondan?" Jungkook looked sceptical.

"Isn't this song a little bit angsty for 'the fun boys'?" Agreed. Namjoon got our attention,

"Hey, what about _Bang_tan Sonyeondan?" We all ooh-ed in admiration. Jimin still looked unsure.

"It's kinda long for a name, though."

"We could always abbreviate it," I suggested, "BTS?" More sounds of approval. So that was sorted.

"So we've got our cool k-pop band name or whatever," said Seokjin, "what about stage names? What do we call ourselves?" We thought. Jungkook and Jimin didn't want to change their names and, in all honesty, nothing else seemed to fit them anyway. Taehyung was getting excited.

"I want something cool. Maybe like just a letter, like V." We agreed that actually sounded quite cool and suited him well. Seokjin decided just to cut his name down to Jin so that just left the rap line without names. I had an idea.

"Can I be Suga? It's like shooting guard and it sounds like the English for sugar," I said and everyone agreed. Jimin still wanted to call me Gloss, but I was against that. Namjoon decided on Rap Monster, RM for short and Hoseok wanted to be called J-Hope, taking the J from his surname and the Hope from all around him. We were all just laughing and I couldn't have asked for a better group of friends.

A week later, Seokjin arranged for us to perform in assembly. In front of people. Real people. Hundreds of them. I was not looking forward to it, but Jimin was there supporting me, so I said yes. We were introduced and we stood in formation on the stage. I saw RM nod to the technicians and we started to sing.

"_I want to be your oppa/ I'm so hungry for your love/ I want to be your oppa/ I'll have you, just watch_."

Jungkook rapped with confidence, RM spat straight fire, J-Hope kept the beat impressively, Taehyung sang and danced with strength, Jimin danced with pure sexual charisma, Jin sang clearly and powerfully and made a few girls fan themselves and I didn't mess up once. We finished and were met with applause and cheers unusually positive for a morning assembly. I didn't realise how much I loved performing until then. We walked calmly off stage but collapsed into squeals and jumps and giggles as soon as we were out of sight.

I loved every second of it and I just wanted to do it again. I wanted to write more, to rap more, to dance more, to release an album, to become famous, to tour Korea, to tour the world. I wanted to able to own the exhilaration, to own the hearts of everyone who heard us or saw us perform. We all wanted the world and we decided then and there that we weren't going to stop until we had it in front of us.

**Le end. Hope you had fun reading it, I had fun writing it so :) Hit me up if you want a bonus chapter or a rewritten one bc I will take literally anything that means I can procrastinate english homework**


	36. Chapter 34 (bonus) - JM

**I did actually quite like writing this again since I finished the rest of the story two months ago, so I might continue this AU just with random timelines or flashbacks or perspective changes or whatever. **

**(also I went a little overboard on the Yoonmin but sue me it's cute)**

**_Bonus – JM focus_**

It was graduation day and Jimin was crying. He wasn't even graduating – but Yoongi was. Namjoon, Seokjin and Hoseok were leaving as well. Jimin had been promoted as captain of the dance team after Hoseok's departure but he didn't mind. He did mind that he wasn't allowed to go to university with Yoongi and he was stuck in this stupid school for another year. It wasn't fair. Namjoon and Seokjin were going to the same university for performing arts; Taehyung and Jungkook still had a year before they could be split apart; even Hoseok's girlfriend was still going to the same dance class as him. But Jimin couldn't stay with Yoongi.

So Jimin was crying. He watched Yoongi collect his award on his final day and pretended that this wasn't happening. He ran to the bathroom to clean up his make-up since they were performing later. Their little group, BTS, had grown incredibly popular throughout the school and they were thinking about starting a Youtube channel if only to keep themselves in contact with each other. After a minute, Jungkook ran in and found him.

"Jiminie, come on, the speech just started, so we're on in about…eight minutes." Jungkook checked the time and Jimin forgot about being sad. He was less nervous about performing than he had been when they started. Now, they had one last performance before over half of them graduated and left. They had already arranged to meet up in vacation time to write and choreograph anything they wanted to. Jimin smiled at his reflection and ran out with Jungkook to join the others in the wings.

The others welcomed him and they all waited patiently and silently for their cue. Jimin entwined his fingers with Yoongi's and rested his head on the elder's shoulder. A small comfort that meant a lot. Finally, the speech ended and the headmaster was announcing them.

"…BTS with their song, _Tomorrow_!" Applause rang through the halls and they walked onto the stage. This time, it wasn't just students watching; parents were sitting in the audience. That's why they had chosen one of their more inspirational, follow-your-dreams type songs to perform instead of a 'fuck school, this shit's hard' type song. Before Jimin knew it, the deep, thrumming intro began to play and Yoongi started to rap. Jimin would never get over Yoongi rapping. It was just so skilful and fluent and it made Jimin almost miss his cue to move.

Cheers and claps thundered through Jimin's ears once the song ended and the seven of them held their positions until they were signalled off stage. Namjoon, Seokjin, Hoseok and Yoongi bowed deeply before following the younger three out of the hall. Every time they performed, there was the same thrilling excitement afterwards that made Jimin want to cry. And with all the emotions running through him, he did just that. Jimin fell into Yoongi's arms and wept softly. He really didn't want him to go.

"Get a fuckin room, faggots!" A voice called out with malice. Yoongi's head shot round to glare at the source of the noise and kissed Jimin lightly on the head before walking away. Jimin looked up and was about to protest but found that his voice failed him. He watched as Yoongi confronted one of his old 'friends' in what seemed to be a harsh battle of vile words. Until Yoongi punched the other in the face as hard as he could. Jimin ran to Yoongi to hold him back and saw the other boy stagger to the floor.

"Yoongi, what the hell?" Jimin made no move to help the other boy up because honestly, why would he? Yoongi wore an expression that showed that he didn't want Jimin to be mad but also had no regrets. Jimin took his hand and just led him away from the bleeding prick on the floor, leaving him to scramble to his feet and pretend he won. Jimin was in the middle of scolding Yoongi for his violence when Yoongi suddenly dropped his hand. Not quite understanding why, Jimin looked up.

A couple of parents were walking down the corridor towards them, the woman with a wide grin on her face. When they reached Yoongi, the woman hugged Yoongi tightly and mumbled something about how proud she was in his ear. So this was his mom. She seemed like a nice lady, polite and loving. His father looked more stern, but still proud. Yoongi's mom pulled back and looked over Jimin.

"Hello, my darling! I thought you performed very well, you have a beautiful voice! We're Yoongi's parents. And you are?" Jimin smiled and bowed.

"Thank you very much, ma'am. I'm Park Jimin, Yoongi's- "

"Friend," Yoongi cut in. Jimin looked at him curiously and earned a warning glare in response. They didn't know Yoongi was dating Jimin. They didn't know Yoongi was dating anyone. They didn't know Yoongi was gay. Ah. Okay, then. They held a normal and polite conversation until Yoongi excused them both. Jimin tried hard to resist the temptation of holding Yoongi's hand again.

"Yoongi! You haven't come out yet?" Jimin hissed, more confused than annoyed. Yoongi shook his head. "Why not?"

"Are you kidding?" Yoongi whispered back, "My dad would throw me out of the house and, believe it or not, I do kind of like my dad." Jimin rolled his eyes and punched Yoongi playfully.

"You're literally going to university in two days," the reiteration of those time restraints caused a twinge of sadness in Jimin's heart, "it really doesn't matter if he throws you out now. Besides…" he didn't want to admit this. He was going to. "it kind of feels like you're ashamed of me." Yoongi stopped him walking and looked him straight in the eye.

"Jimin don't you ever, _ever_, think that I am ashamed of you. I love you." Jimin choked on his own breath.

"U-um…y-you what, sorry?" Jimin had heard perfectly fine but he did not by any means believe his ears. It had to be his imagination. Yoongi looked nervous but tried to appear confident, a look Jimin had seen many times before.

"Park Jimin, I love you. I will never be ashamed of you. I am so proud of you for everything you do and you will never understand how lucky I feel to have you." Jimin wanted to cry for the third time that day but held back as best he could. He smiled at Yoongi, unable to contain the love he felt spilling out from his heart.

"I love you too." It came out barely as a whisper but it was audible in their bubble they had, separating them from the rest of the world. Yoongi smiled back at Jimin and gently pressed their lips together, sealing their bond and swearing never to break it for anyone. A high-pitched squeal pulled them apart as they both winced at the noise. Seokjin was standing a few feet away from them, clearly having just taken a photo, nearly jumping with excitement.

"I'm sorry but that's soooo cute, I couldn't resist!" he squeaked and Jimin and Yoongi couldn't help but laugh. Sure, Seokjin was the oldest, but he acted so much like a child that you could easily forget it. Namjoon appeared from somewhere and Seokjin calmed down and gripped his hand.

"What happened?" asked Namjoon. Yoongi and Jimin looked at each other, falling deep into each other's eyes. Jimin grinned,

"I love him."

"AWW!" came Jungkook's voice from behind them and everyone looked over to see Jungkook and Taehyung approach from down the corridor with Hoseok. "Yoongi, what do you say back?" Jungkook pouted, waiting for his perfect k-drama moment that he fully knew had already happened. Yoongi rolled his eyes but still smiled.

"I love him, too." They kissed again which somehow prompted a group hug to kick off. Warm love surrounded them as the seven of them crowded around each other for what seemed like an eternity. They all just laughed and embraced each other, savouring the fact that they were together. When they finally got too hot, they spread out again. But something was missing.

"Hey, where'd Yoongi go?" asked Hoseok and everyone looked around, confused. He must have snuck out somewhere but no one could figure out why or even where. Footsteps down the corridor alerted everyone's attention. Yoongi was jogging down the corridor towards them, seemingly having just come from the hall. He looked panicked or scared or probably both. Jimin was concerned but before he could ask, Yoongi took his hand and led him through the corridors and out of the school.

"We need to leave now." There were so many questions circling around Jimin's head that he couldn't form a single one. Yoongi answered all of them. "I came out to my dad. Literally a minute ago. I just said 'Dad, Park Jimin is my boyfriend, I'm gay,' and he looked hella mad and just stared at me. Then the guy I beat up came and accused me of punching him in the face _in front of my dad_. He made a grab for me but I ran. So, yeah, we need to go literally anywhere else." Jimin was shocked. Yoongi found the courage to come out and his dad wasn't accepting him? And some homophobic shithead was being a homophobic shithead? Not on. Really not on. Jimin pulled him to a secluded section behind the trees around the edge of the school and finally said,

"Yoongi, it's okay. We'll hide out here for a while and then you go back in without me and see if he's calmed down. It's going to be fine. If it isn't, you're leaving on Sunday anyway and you can sleep at my place until then. Okay?" Yoongi nodded and Jimin relaxed. He prided himself on being able to calm people down and he knew exactly what to do with Yoongi.

He didn't know how this was going to play out. He didn't know if Yoongi's dad would kick him out. He didn't know whether they would stay together after Yoongi left. What he did know was that Yoongi was next to him and he loved him. And, to Jimin, that was all that mattered.

**aww happy ever after or whatever. **


	37. Chapter 35 - V

**Oh wow remember this? It was my first day back and I was bored so this happened more Yoonmin yaayy. This stuffs kinda laid back to write and I have a list of potential chapters so it should be easier now.**

**_35 – V focus_**

It was the morning of Taehyung's fourth day of high school and he was already tired as hell. His first day had been chaotic. No one followed him up from middle school that he knew so he was all alone. He had been picked on by the older years for irrelevant things like his hair and his uniform. They all wore the same uniform; there were some serious double standards in this school.

He checked his timetable and trudged to his next class: English. He was bad at it and he hated it. It was so convoluted and pointless and impossible but, for some reason, compulsory. It made no sense to Taehyung. He somehow found his classroom in the mess of a school he had found himself in and sat down on the second row from the back.

This wasn't his class because they mixed up the first years so they could 'make friends more easily'. Taehyung didn't see how that worked since he could solidify friendships with people in his form already. Granted, he didn't have any, but it was only the second day. A few more people filtered into the classroom until most of the seats were full. The seat next to Taehyung was free but he didn't mind that; one less person to talk to.

Until someone did sit there. A short boy with black hair and a cute face walked into the classroom, staring at the floor and sat next to Taehyung without acknowledging anyone. He just got out his things and stared at the desk. Taehyung looked at him. The boy had been crying. Taehyung didn't know why, but the boy's eyes were red and the sleeves of his blazer were stained with tears. Taehyung said nothing. Whatever he was crying about, it probably wasn't any of his business.

The teacher entered the classroom and started writing on the board in English. Taehyung vaguely recognised the words but couldn't quite decipher them.

"So," the teacher began, "who can tell me what this means?" No one raised their hand. "Kim Taehyung?" Taehyung's throat went dry. He hated being put on the spot.

"I'm sorry, sir, I don't know," he admitted and the teacher tutted.

"What about you, Park Jimin?" The boy next to Taehyung looked up and studied the board before answering,

"I don't know either, sir." A girl in the front row raised her hand and translated the sentence perfectly. Taehyung scoffed quietly and, under his breath, muttered,

"Show off." At the same time, he heard the boy next to him, Park Jimin, utter the same phrase. They looked at each other and smiled. Taehyung thanked God that there was someone who shared his views in this school. The teacher rambled on, switching between Korean and English. In all honesty, Taehyung phased out until he heard the teacher say something about working in pairs. The class started talking and Taehyung turned to Jimin. Before he could say anything, Jimin said,

"Sorry, I wasn't listening. What are we supposed to be doing?" Taehyung laughed.

"I was literally about to ask the same thing. I wasn't listening either. Besides, how are we supposed to concentrate when half of the time, he's talking in a language I don't even understand?" Jimin laughed and Taehyung thought that he looked nicer when he was smiling, rather than crying. From listening to other people's conversations, they managed to figure out that they were supposed to introduce themselves in English. They did it lazily and quickly and then spoke in a language they were actually comfortable with for the rest of the exercise.

Jimin was cool. He didn't give a shit about English, he got no sleep ever, he had a younger brother and he was very excitable. By that description, Taehyung would have thought it was talking about himself. The lesson ended and they both left for recess, still talking and having not learned any English. They found a place to sit and just talked some more. It turned out they both knew no one here and weren't really friends with anyone in their forms. After a while, Taehyung asked,

"Hey, is it ok to ask why you were crying when you came into class?" Jimin frowned,

"You noticed?" He looked vaguely embarrassed and Taehyung wanted to make him feel better.

"Yeah, you looked kinda sad and your eyes were red, so I just assumed. It wasn't that obvious, though, I only noticed because you were next to me and I'm good at reading people."

"Oh. Well, before school, I always get made fun of on the bus by a bunch of second graders who say I should go back to middle school because I'm so short. It's annoying and stupid and I know I shouldn't cry because they make fun of me for that as well." Taehyung tilted his head.

"That's not fair. That's a valid thing to cry at. Besides, why are they making fun of you for being short? There's a bunch of pricks like that on my bus as well who take the piss out of first graders and I swear one of them isn't much taller than you." Taehyung was kind of annoyed at these bullies for making fun of his new friend.

"Really? Which bus do you get?"

"51," Taehyung replied.

"Oh my God, me too! I'm probably the one you see getting picked on!"

"Oh my God, no way! They'll pick on anyone younger than them. They keep making fun of me for my hair and I kind of want to dye it, if I'm honest," Taehyung conceded and Jimin looked personally offended.

"What? I love your hair! It beats brown or black," he smiled. Taehyung's hair was currently a dirty blond but fading slowly to his natural hazel colour. "Dye your hair because you want to, not because some random second graders tell you to." Taehyung grinned.

"I like you, Jimin. You're cool."

"You're cool, too. Wanna sit next to me on the bus?"

"To protect you from the scary basketball players?" Taehyung joked.

"Or to, like, be friends, or something, but yeah, that too," Jimin smiled.

"Sure."

After school, Taehyung found Jimin sitting by himself with an empty seat next to him. He sat down next to him and said hi. They sat and talked until Taehyung went home and told his mom and his dog all about his new friend. In the morning, he got up and sat next to Jimin on the bus. After school, he sat next to Jimin on the bus. Then there was a weekend where Taehyung found out that he would be attending study classes after school, meaning he would have to take the later bus that Jimin didn't go on.

On Monday, this slipped his mind and Taehyung forgot completely until the last lesson, after which he ran to the library so he wouldn't be late. He hoped Jimin wouldn't be too angry. The next morning, Jimin seemed a bit down, but Taehyung dismissed it as just Tuesday blues. He shouldn't have done.

At lunchtime, trying to find Jimin, he heard a commotion in the locker room. It was the alpha second graders bullying some poor first year. Except it wasn't some poor first year. It was Jimin. Taehyung watched with horror, too afraid to stop it. Eventually, one of the bystanders, seemingly friends with the bullies, signalled them away and left Jimin on the floor. Taehyung immediately ran to help the crying boy up and apologised profusely. All Jimin said was,

"I just want to leave here." Taehyung felt so guilty but he couldn't even do anything. He apologised for still having to leave Jimin on the bus by himself and Jimin forgave him, thankfully.

The next day, Taehyung prepared to deal with a sad Jimin again. This was not the case. He seemed light-hearted and rejuvenated. Taehyung wondered why until Jimin trailed off in the middle of a sentence, completely losing his train of thought. Confused, Taehyung followed his line of sight to a second grader that he recognised as the one that called off the fight the day before. Looking back at Jimin, Taehyung expected him to be afraid or angry.

Instead, he looked completely smitten. Taehyung couldn't help but laugh,

"I think his name's Min Yoongi."


	38. Chapter 36 - JK

**_36 – JK focus_**

**Hi. So this is back. Just bc there's been some jumping around time frames I'll clarify that Vmin are in 3rd grade now and Jungkook is in 2nd grade. Today marks a special day in Taekook's relationship :) (I pinkie promise there'll be something to do with Namjinseok in the next chapter)**

Jungkook was nervous as hell. Today, he would be going round to Taehyung's house for the first time ever. He would meet Taehyung's parents and his siblings and his dog and he really didn't want to do anything wrong. Apparently, Taehyung had already told his parents he was gay and dating a boy named Jungkook. Apparently, he had done it all in one breath with his eyes shut tightly. His parents had been chill with it, though, helping Jungkook relax significantly.

They had been going out for a while now and Jungkook hadn't told his parents yet. They probably knew he was dating someone, since most of what he did was facetime Taehyung and smile at his phone. He was constantly worried that they would take him aside and tell him that he was too young to date, but Jungkook was in 2nd grade now; he could do what he wanted.

After school that day, he nearly walked to his own bus instead of Taehyung's. Someone reminded him at the last minute, luckily, and Jungkook sprinted to the 51. He found Taehyung and Jimin sitting and talking with each other near the back of the bus. He smiled and swung himself down in the empty seat behind Taehyung. Taehyung grinned at him.

"Hi. Nervous?" he somehow read Jungkook's mind since that was literally all he could think about. He blushed,

"Yeah, kinda. I just don't want to mess up in front of your family," he admitted. Jimin just laughed,

"Tae's parents won't care if you do. They've seen me crying more than once and they still like me. Or maybe I'm just insanely loveable." Taehyung rolled his eyes.

"Yes, Chim, we know. Anyway, Jungkook, you are literally the nicest, politest kid in the world, there's no way anyone's parents could hate you," he pointed out and Jimin nodded at Jungkook. Jungkook still wasn't convinced. Taehyung noticed. "Look, my parents don't get home for an hour after us. Until then, it's just us and Yeontan. We can just relax and study for a while." Jungkook frowned,

"How do you relax _and_ study?" Taehyung just laughed.

After a whole bunch of stops, Taehyung stood up and Jungkook followed him off the bus. Jungkook was slightly less anxious; more excited, if anything. They were going to ask if Jungkook could sleep over. Jungkook hadn't had a sleepover since he lived in Busan and he really hoped Taehyung's parents would say yes. They arrived at a pretty, secluded house and Taehyung fished his keys out of his pocket while Jungkook studied the exterior. It looked small and simple but nice, nonetheless. It was clear that a lot of work had gone into it to make this house a home.

Taehyung opened the door and ushered Jungkook inside. He stepped into a comfortable hall with cream-coloured walls and red carpets. There were pictures all along the hall of smiling people, most including Taehyung, in a variety of places: outside the front door, in the sea, on a mountain. Jungkook smiled and slipped his shoes off, going to take a closer look at one of the photos.

It was definitely Taehyung, but he looked very different. He didn't look that much younger but he was clearly far more innocent. He was dressed in the school uniform, but it was a little big on him. His hair wasn't its current violet, or even his trademark orange, but a natural-looking dark blonde with brown highlights. His eyes were shining and he was smiling excitedly, standing in front of the house with his schoolbag, looking significantly newer than it currently did, clutched tightly in his arms. There was writing in the corner that Jungkook saw was a date reading September three years ago.

"Taehyung, was this your first day at school?" Jungkook asked, grinning and pointing at the picture. Taehyung sighed and blushed.

"Yeah. Wow, I looked so small." A squeal came from somewhere upstairs and Jungkook instinctively looked at the ceiling as if he could see through it. Taehyung frowned. "Speaking of small…" He started to walk towards the stairs but he was quickly stopped by a little girl with dark brown hair running down and hugging him tightly. A young boy, probably about ten years old, followed her.

"Taehyungie, you're back!" the boy exclaimed. These were probably Taehyung's siblings, _Eon-Jin and Jeong-Gyu,_ Jungkook remembered. He watched Taehyung pick up his sister, who couldn't be older than five or six. He ruffled Jeong-Gyu's hair and smiled widely.

"Hiya! Why aren't you at lessons?" he asked in a sweet voice that made Jungkook smile.

"They got cancelled so we got took back here," Eon-Jin answered cutely. Jungkook had always wanted a younger sibling and seeing Taehyung with his was really not helping.

"Hyung?" Jeong-Gyu asked, a little more apprehensive than he had been before. Taehyung hummed in response, setting his little sister on the floor again, where she immediately started grabbing at the hem of his blazer. "Who's he?" Taehyung spun around to look at Jungkook, who was still awkwardly standing in the hall. Jungkook fidgeted with his hands and Taehyung held his sister's.

"That's Jungkook. Come and say hi!" he walked forwards and his siblings followed him, eyeing Jungkook analytically. Wanting to make a good impression, Jungkook smiled nicely and waved.

"Hi! My name's Jungkook, it's great to meet you!" Jeong-Gyu bowed to him politely and Jungkook bowed back on instinct. Eon-Jin was a little shyer, understandably. Jungkook crouched down to her level and held out his hand. Taehyung stroked her hair gently.

"It's alright, sweetheart. He's my friend and he's very, very nice. Go on," he assured her. She smiled coyly and took Jungkook's hand. Jungkook smiled brightly and Eon-Jin giggled. He let go of her hand and stood up again to see Taehyung beaming parentally. "Eon-Jin, do you want to go and get Tannie?" he asked her and her face lit up. She turned and ran up the stairs, Jeong-Gyu close behind her. Jungkook laughed,

"Oh my God, that was the most adorable thing I have ever seen!" Taehyung blushed.

"Yeah, they're pretty damn cute-"

"I was talking about you," Jungkook smiled at Taehyung's embarrassment.

"S-so anyway, we should probably stay in the main room if they're bringing Yeontan down. We can just play with them until my dad comes home. Shouldn't be too hard. Eon-Jin likes princesses and attention and Jeong-Gyu likes anime and video games." Jungkook was down for that. Taehyung's brother sounded cool and Eon-Jin would be fun to look after. Maybe this would be easier than he thought.

**Hope you liked it! Comment requests if you want and who knows I might write it**


	39. Chapter 39 - SJ

**_see A/N at the end lol no one reads those but I'm just gonna clarify some things_**

"Jesus Christ, Namjoon, get up!" Seokjin laughed for what had to be the hundredth time. It was nearly 10 am and Seokjin knew fully well that Namjoon had a class at 10:15. Seokjin had Thursdays free and usually spent them studying or cooking. He was lucky that one of Namjoon's assigned roommates had been willing to switch so the couple could share a dorm.

College life was weird. No one forced you to show up for class, but you would get kicked out if you failed. You lived with your friends and you could go out whenever you wanted. You only had a maximum of three lessons a day and it just felt so much more grown-up. Seokjin was proud of himself and Namjoon for growing up this fast, although it had been a little bit of a hurdle getting used to the younger's sleeping habits.

There was a thud from the bedroom as, presumably, Namjoon rolled out of bed. Seokjin rolled his eyes fondly and finished packing Namjoon's lunchbox. Namjoon had classes until 1 pm and he needed something to keep him going. Besides, Seokjin loved to spoil his precious boyfriend as much as he could. Namjoon stumbled out of the bedroom in lazy but somehow attractive clothes. That was the other thing about college – no uniform. Seokjin wore the same hoodie most days.

Seokjin handed Namjoon his lunchbox and kissed him goodbye.

"Knock 'em dead!" he wished.

"Will do! Oh, and we'll sort out the date when I get back," Namjoon replied, grinning, before swinging his bag over his shoulder. Seokjin smiled back and kissed him again on the cheek before letting him walk out of the door. Seokjin stared at the closed door after him, a little saddened that he wouldn't see his boyfriend for a whole 3 hours.

"You have the fattest crush on him, it's adorable," came one of their other roommates' voice. Seokjin laughed,

"Shut up, squirt," he said and Jackson pouted. He was the shortest out of all four of them but he made up for it with an insanely dynamic personality. "You're just jealous because your crush doesn't like you back," he smirked and Jackson blushed.

"You're so rude, hyung," he tutted, smiling. He went to his room to study and Seokjin sat at the table on his phone, hoping to pass the time. He thought about the first day when they all met for the first time. They had just talked for a while, getting to know each other, realising they all towered over Jackson. Jae was just about the tallest of them _and_ was incredibly eccentric. Inside though, he could be just as bashful as Namjoon.

It quickly became apparent that Seokjin was the only one who wasn't minoring in English. At first, it made him feel left out when the others spoke English to each other, but he soon found out that they were either complimenting Seokjin so he wouldn't hear or practising boring speaking exercises.

Seokjin had been quickly established as the head of the household. Despite Jae being the oldest, he wasn't the most enthusiastic about responsibility or schedule. Seokjin quickly (and accidentally) memorised everyone else's timetable as well as his own within 2 months, often reminding them to go to classes. He cooked every so often and didn't mind it. He liked taking care of people and he like making people happy.

Seokjin's thought's switched to his plans for that afternoon. Seokjin and Namjoon wanted a double date with someone, but it was surprisingly hard to find couples. Jackson's crush, a guy in Seokjin's drama class named Jinyoung, had shown no intentions of liking Jackson back. Jae wasn't one for keeping girlfriends for long but that wasn't his fault. Many girls just misunderstood his sweet charisma for flirting or cheating, so he decided to stay single for a while.

_Speak of the devil,_ Seokjin thought as Jae distracted him from his thoughts by yawning loudly and walking out of his room. Seokjin smiled,

"Hyung, you had a class at 8:30. Did you go?" he asked, knowing fully well that he did not. Jae just shrugged and walked to the kitchen, opening the fridge.

"Well, that depends what time it is," he answered, picking up some leftovers from the night before. He sat down at the table nonchalantly and Seokjin laughed,

"You're only two hours late. Better than most days," he pointed out and Jae shrugged proudly. Jae was not a morning person. He went to about 60% of his classes but studied hard at night. It wasn't unusual for anyone to get up at 3 am and hear a guitar playing or a voice sounding through the door. Sometimes they thought that Jae wasn't lazy or shy; just nocturnal.

Jae grabbed an apple and swung out of the door to go hang out with his friends or something and Seokjin was alone in the kitchen again. He sighed and went to his room to do homework. Practical theatre was a lot more coursework and studying than it had seemed, but he didn't have any choice. College seemed like it freed you, but all it did was make you realise for yourself that you weren't free.

A little over three hours later, the door opened and Namjoon walked in. Seokjin smiled and hugged him. It hadn't been long, but Seokjin loved him.

"Hyung, I can't breathe," Namjoon laughed and Seokjin let go reluctantly, pouting. Namjoon just kissed him and sat down. "Any thoughts?" he asked, referring to the date. Seokjin shrugged and joined him at the table.

"None other than the usual suspects. Who first?" he asked and Namjoon smiled,

"Let's try Taehyung and Kookie. We haven't seen them since school broke up." Seokjin nodded, getting out his phone and scrolling through his contacts. He pressed Taehyung's number and put it on speaker. It rang a few times before the boy picked up.

"_Hyung! What's up? We haven't talked in ages!" _ he replied excitedly. Seokjin and Namjoon exchanged a fond look.

"I know, it's been too long," Namjoon agreed.

"_Oh, Namjoon-hyung, you're here too! Wait a minute, Jungkook's here as well,"_

_"Hi!"_ came Jungkook's voice down the line.

"Hey, guys! Having fun at baby school?" Seokjin teased.

_"Shut up, hyung,"_ was Taehyung's response. "_How's college?"_ Seokjin was about to start complaining when Namjoon clapped a hand over his mouth.

"It's great! You're going to love it," he answered and Seokjin rolled his eyes.

_"You're bad at lying,"_ Jungkook stated. Namjoon sighed,

"Fine. Look, we called because we wanted to ask you something," he told them.

_"Ooh, what?" _Taehyung asked.

"Do you want to go on a double date with us?" Seokjin asked.

"_Oh, that sounds fun!" _Taehyung exclaimed. "_Oh, wait…"_ There was silence as the couple presumably discussed something. Seokjin and Namjoon waited patiently.

_"It can't be any time this month. I've got midterms and I want to do well. You remember, right?" _Jungkook answered sadly.

"That's okay. Don't stress too much and you'll do amazingly, I know it," Namjoon reassured him.

_"Thanks, hyung! I hope you find someone else for your date," _Jungkook said and Seokjin shrugged,

"Maybe next month we can all go out together."

_"That sounds so nice. We'll talk later, okay? Lunch is nearly over and… well, you remember how hot it is under the stairs?"_ Taehyung reminded them and Namjoon laughed,

"Get out of there, you'll boil. See you guys!"

"_Bye, hyungs!"_

_"Talk soon!"_

"Bye, kids," Seokjin called before hanging up. "That was nice," he commented and Namjoon agreed, flicking through his phone to find Yoongi's number. He rang it and put it on speaker. It took a lot longer than Taehyung did.

_"What?"_ came Yoongi's voice. Seokjin couldn't help but laugh.

"Good day to you, too. How's school going?" he asked. He had an idea of what Yoongi's timetable was like but he didn't know any of the details.

_"Well, I just woke up and it's like 2 in the afternoon, so it's going amazingly. You?"_ he answered, explaining the gruffness in his voice. Namjoon snickered,

"Hyung, I just got back from my third class in a row. You're lucky. Anyway, how's Jimin?" he asked.

_"Ah…"_ Yoongi began with a sudden softness of tone. _"He's really sick at the moment. The only reason I'm up right now is that he just had a doctor's appointment and he's meant to call me straight away."_

"Oh my God," Seokjin mumbled. "I hope he gets better soon."

_"Me too. He used to come and visit but I haven't seen him in a week," _Yoongi told them, with a slight whine audible at the end, like a sad puppy.

"I guess that's a no to the double date," Namjoon sighed. Yoongi was quiet for a minute.

_"You know we'd love to, but at the moment, I can't even go on a single date with him. Did you try Taekook?"_ he asked.

"Yeah, but Jungkook's got midterms and he needs to study," Namjoon recounted, and Yoongi laughed.

_"Okay, but at some point, we've got to all be free. We've got to record the new song. I think Hoseok finished choreographing it with his girlfriend. Oh! There's a couple for you,"_ he realised and Seokjin smiled,

"We were gonna call them next. It's a shame you couldn't come, though."

_"Maybe some other time,"_ he hummed.

"Of course. Right, we're gonna call Hoseok. Bye, Yoongs!"

_"See ya, hyung. See ya Namjoon!"_

"Bye, hyung!" Namjoon said and then hung up. "Poor Minnie," he whined and Seokjin ruffled his hair. Namjoon always got so concerned about how the others were doing; he must be distressed to hear that Jimin was sick.

"He'll be okay. He's a strong kid. Come on, let's call Hoseok," he smiled and Namjoon smiled back. Seokjin called Hoseok and let it ring.

_"Hello?"_ a woman's voice answered. Seokjin and Namjoon looked at each other with equal levels of confusion.

"Oh… hi," Namjoon answered smoothly. The woman giggled.

_"You must be Hobi's friend. He's at a class at the moment, but he should be here… oh! That's him now. Good timing! Hold on a second,"_ the voice trailed off. She seemed nice. Cheery. A minute later, Hoseok's voice sounded.

_"Oh, Jin-hyung! Sorry, I was just walking back. What's up?"_ he asked happily.

"Nothing much. Namjoon and I were just wondering if you wanted to go on a double date with us? Soon as you can that's convenient," he requested and Hoseok gasped,

_"That sounds so cool! Gimme a sec. Hyunnie!" _he called back to his girlfriend. It occurred to Seokjin that none of them had ever seen Hoseok's girlfriend. She wasn't even at graduation. He just talked about her a lot. _"Yeah, sure!"_ Hoseok answered. _"Are you free tonight? There's a nice place not far from either of our colleges,"_ he suggested and Namjoon grinned,

"That sounds perfect." Hoseok gave them an address and they agreed on a time.

_"I'm looking forward to seeing you again!"_

"You too, Seokie. Bye!" Seokjin hung up and sighed happily. They had a date and they were going to see Hoseok and they were going to meet his girlfriend. It was weird that they had never seen her, even once, but Hoseok made up for it by talking about her a lot. they had a pretty good idea of what to expect.

_**lol hi again. A few things for you to understand my head some more**_

**_1) pretend the weird chapter skips never happened. I really don't know what I was thinking when I typed Chapter 22i like what was the point?  
2) I'm kind of backlogged with stuff atm plus school exists now so I promise some better stuff is coming soon but idk exactly when :/  
3) I was genuinely gonna give up and ditch this story because it's long and I didn't know how many people still read it but thanks for reviewing and not making me give up :)  
4) sorry not sorry for the Jackson cameo like he shows up in every fanfiction at some point tbh. Really not sorry for throwing Jae in there, too. Stan BTS and Day6_**

**_ok I'm done byee love you xx_**


	40. Chapter 40 - YG

**Sorry not sorry it'll get better at some point in the future I think**

Namjoon hung up and I suddenly felt really lonely. He was basically the first person I had talked to in about a day and a half. I didn't talk to my roommates that much, but they never talked to me either. Maybe they thought I was scary or something. Even, so, Jimin had visited a few times or so and they saw me being nice then. Maybe they just didn't like me.

I lay back in bed and tried not to think about Jimin. I was so goddamn worried about him and it was killing me. When Namjoon rang, I had wanted to answer it immediately. If I did that, though, they'd know something was up. So I waited for maybe too long. At least they didn't think anything was up.

I felt so bad for lying to them. It was true that Jimin was sick. It was also true that Jimin was at the doctors. He had no plans to call me and I knew it. He wouldn't dare.

A few weeks ago, Jimin came round. My roommates let him in and he went to my room but I wasn't there; I was in a music class. Correction: I was crying in a music class. I worked so hard on this one piece and my professor decided, instead of praising me, that he would pick apart everything wrong with it.

"The melody was off-balance."

"Play that in an exam and you'll fail for sure."

"No wonder you can't play with posture like that." Etcetera. I tried really hard not to let people see me cry. The moment someone did, I left.

Since we started dating, Jimin had seen me on some pretty bad days. This one might have been the worst yet. Thoughts were spinning around in my head about how much of a failure I was, how nothing would ever work out and how if I don't put my head down now, I'd be kicked out.

My plan was to get back to my room, cry for a bit and then work until about 4 am. However, I opened the door to my room and saw little Jimin sitting on my desk chair, swinging his legs like a child. His face lit up when he heard me enter but dropped quickly when he saw the state I was in. I snapped completely and I'm still not sure why.

"Hyung, are you- "

"Get the fuck out," I growled. If he looked upset, it didn't register. "I can barely keep up with my classes as it is. Do you think I need you here distracting me? You should know better than that. I don't know if you want to make me fail, but I sure as hell don't need that. So I'll say it again: get the fuck out of my room. Get the fuck out of my dorm and get the fuck off my campus. I don't want to see you."

Jimin bowed his head and nodded slightly. He stood up and walked out the door, which I slammed swiftly behind him. I heard the front door shut softer and just got on with my work. I didn't really think about it until later.

That was two weeks ago and I haven't heard from him since. I have, however, been getting regular updates from the amazing friend who is Kim Taehyung. The next day, he texted me a bunch of times and I couldn't really tell how he felt about me.

**_Tae (7:47 am):_**_ um_

**_Tae:_**_ wtf did you do to Jimin?_

**_Tae:_**_ he's really off and he won't tell me what's wrong_

**_Tae:_**_ he was really excited to see you as well…_

**_Tae:_**_ nvm he'll tell me at break_

**_Tae (10:39): _**_dude_

**_Tae:_**_ wtaf_

**_Tae:_**_ there'd be a time when I'd ask wtf is wrong with you_

**_Tae:_**_ or how could you_

**_Tae:_**_ but ik you better than that now and I just wanna ask_

**_Tae: _**_are you ok?_

**_Tae:_**_ idt Jimin's the only one taking this rough_

**_Tae:_**_ whatever's up, I hope it gets better soon_

**_Tae:_**_ hyung, fighting!_

I read through those messages and instantly started crying. Taehyung wasn't even mad at me. He… forgave me? He knew something was up, he knew I would never do something like that to Jimin on a clear head. And I was relieved.

What stressed me out, however, was the radio silence from Jimin. I don't know if he was mad at me or if he was waiting for me to talk first. The first I heard from him was from Taehyung a few days later.

**_Tae: _**_hyung_

**_Tae:_**_ Jimin got taken out of school today_

**_Tae:_**_ he's really sick_

**_Tae: _**_he wasn't looking too great on the bus and he passed out in physics_

**_Tae:_**_ idk if he went home or to the hospital but I thought you should know_

**_Tae:_**_ you maybe wanna respond anytime soon?_

I then remembered that Taehyung was an actual human rather than a live stream on Jimin.

**_Yoongi-hyung:_**_ this_

**_Yoongi-hyung:_**_ this wasn't me_

**_Yoongi-hyung: _**_right?_

**_Tae:_**_ oh hey hyung_

**_Tae:_**_ dw I'm sure it wasn't you_

**_Tae:_**_ just really bad timing_

**_Tae:_**_ he'll be fine soon enough_

**_Yoongi-hyung:_**_ keep me updated?_

**_Tae:_**_ ofc_

**_Tae:_**_ I gtg do hwk now tho lol_

**_Tae:_**_ hope you're feeling better!_

I felt guilty that Jimin was in the hospital and yet I was the one getting well-wished from Taehyung. The younger kept his promise and kept me in the loop with Jimin's condition, overall not good. I kept it quiet. I didn't want anyone to know how horrible I had been, or at least until it had all blown over. I just didn't know when that would happen.

Jimin was all I could think about. Aside from the incident on the bus when we were at school, I never lost my temper with him. He was too sweet for that. But he had been sweet when I got back and I still flipped. I had a feeling I was overthinking this. All couples fight, right? This wasn't any different.

Still restless and Jimin-obsessed, I texted Taehyung. And then remembered he was in a literature class and would definitely not reply; not with that evil witch of a teacher watching. But. Jungkook was in English.

**_Hyoongi: _**_Jungkook_

**_Hyoongi:_** _you're really gonna leave me on read_

**_Kook:_**_ Hyung I'm in class_

**_Hyoongi:_**_ then leave_

**_Hyoongi:_**_ I wanna talk to you_

**_Kook:_**_ I-_

**_Kook:_**_ Fine gimme a sec_

**_Hyoongi:_**_ hurry up_

**_Kook:_**_ Yeah ok what_

**_Hyoongi:_**_ how's Jimin?_

**_Kook:_**_ Not here_

**_Kook:_**_ Why don't you ask him yourself?_

**_Hyoongi:_**_ does he want to talk to me tho_

**_Kook:_**_ He misses you_

**_Kook: _**_We called yesterday and he was talking about you a lot_

**_Hyoongi:_**_ what's wrong with him?_

**_Kook:_**_ ?_

**_Kook:_**_ You yelled at him!_

**_Hyoongi:_**_ nonononono miscommunication_

**_Hyoongi:_**_ I meant as in like what's making him sick?_

**_Kook:_**_ …_

**_Kook:_**_ They don't know yet_

**_Kook:_**_ He knows I'm at school so he hasn't told me the results yet_

**_Hyoongi:_**_ can you tell me when he does_

**_Kook:_**_ Hyung just ask him yourself_

**_Hyoongi:_**_ Jungkook pleasr_

**_Hyoongi:_**_ please_

**_Kook:_**_ Are you okay?_

**_Kook:_**_ I gotta get back to class but please be okay hyung x_

**_Hyoongi: _**_okay_


	41. Chapter 41 - JK

**Pt. 2 of Jungkook and Taehyung's playdate thing or whatever idk what to call it**

Taehyung led him into the main room, which was large but filled with toys, a bookshelf and a TV, as well as a comfortable, squishy leather sofa with scratched armrests, probably courtesy of Yeontan. Taehyung sat down and Jungkook copied, leaning against his boyfriend comfortably. It was nice when they were like this; just warm and together.

The door opened and Jeong-Gyu walked in, holding the door for his sister who had her arms full with a huge ball of black and blonde fluff that looked three times the size of her head. She walked in carefully and slowly and stopped in front of Jungkook. She shyly offered him the dog and Jungkook took him gratefully.

"Thank you so much! Oh, he's beautiful!" Yeontan was indeed beautiful. His fur was luscious and deep and Jungkook's fingers sank straight in as he petted him. It reminded him of stroking Holly at Yoongi's house all those months ago when he was so nervous. Now, he wasn't exactly nervous, he just didn't want to do anything wrong.

"Hyung, can I watch TV?" Jeong-Gyu asked. Jungkook was surprised at the respect Taehyung commanded in his house. It was the reward he got for being nice to his siblings and caring for them. Jungkook smiled at how different things were in his house. If you wanted the remote, you would fight for it. Taehyung set Eon-Jin on his lap.

"Have you done your times tables?" Taehyung asked, not sternly, but with some kind of controlled authority that still sounded nice somehow. Jeong-Gyu nodded. "Four times nine?"

"Thirty-six," the boy answered immediately.

"Eleven times twelve?" Taehyung asked again. Jeong-Gyu hesitated momentarily.

"A hundred and thirty-two." Taehyung smiled encouragingly and looked at Jungkook. Another question. Jungkook wondered how good he was.

"Thirteen squared?" he asked and Jeong-Gyu looked puzzled for a minute. He paused before answering,

"Hundred and…um…sixty-nine?" Jungkook was impressed.

"Yeah, well done! Tae, you let him watch whatever he wants, okay?" he said and Jeong-Gyu beamed widely at him, his bright smile resembling Taehyung's. He scrambled next to Jungkook on the smallish couch and took the remote, switching on the TV and flicking through the channels.

"Nothing violent, please, your sister's still young," Taehyung reminded him. Jeong-Gyu looked up and nodded, changing the channel once more. Pikachu appeared on the screen and Jungkook tried not to gasp too audibly. He hadn't watched Pokémon in ages. He settled back next to Taehyung, stroking the sleeping Yeontan, and let the nostalgia wash over him.

After a while, Jungkook felt himself falling asleep. He didn't want to, but he was just so comfortable and he couldn't help it. He thought that he should probably wake himself up. Team Rocket was being useless and funny, making Eon-Jin giggle the cutest giggle ever, Jungkook thought.

"Hey, Taehyung, where's the bathroom?" he asked. Taehyung didn't take his eyes off the screen, just as engrossed as his siblings and carefully took Yeontan off him.

"Down the hall, the last door on the right before you hit the dining room," he answered. Jungkook got up and left the room. As he walked down the hall, he noticed that the house smelled like Taehyung (or Taehyung smelled like his house. Probably that way round). It smelled of good cooking and fizzy sweets and wax crayons and new comic books all in one. In short, it smelled amazing.

He found the bathroom and washed his hands. He redid his hair since it had been messed up a little bit from leaning on Taehyung for so long. He took a beat to just relax and compose himself before leaving again and walking back to the main room. He got distracted by one of the pictures on the wall and stopped to look at it.

Again, it was definitely Taehyung. He was small and probably around four years old. He was playing with sand on the beach, his dark eyes one hundred per cent focused on the sandcastle in front of him. He had a blue plastic spade in his hand and he was wearing a blue bucket hat as well. Jungkook couldn't help but smile at the undeniable cuteness of that picture. He was about to go back in and join Taehyung when he heard something.

"I like Jungkook. He's cool and nice." Jungkook felt bad for eavesdropping but he wanted to hear what they thought about him. "Can he come over again? We can show him the Poké room…" Jeong-Gyu was cut off by Taehyung saying,

"No. He doesn't find out about that. He'd just mess it up." He sounded like a stroppy preteen trying to protect his stuff and Jungkook had to bite back a laugh.

"Do you love him?" Eon-Jin asked innocently. There was a pause and Jungkook swallowed, anxious.

"Yeah, princess. I love him," Taehyung replied, talking more to himself than his sister. Jungkook couldn't help but smile with relief. As he was about to go back in and give Taehyung the biggest cuddle, the front door opened and two people walked in. _Taehyung's parents_. They saw Jungkook and looked at him curiously. He bowed deeply.

"Hello, I'm Jeon Jungkook. It's nice to meet you," he smiled politely. Taehyung emerged from the main room, overtaken by his siblings and dog.

"Hey! This is Jungkook," Taehyung reiterated for him. The two younger ones ran back to the main room after greeting their parents, anxious not to miss a second of the show. Taehyung's mother smiled prettily.

"Oh, of course, your boyfriend! Darling, we've heard so much about you!" Jungkook stayed in conversation with Taehyung's family for a while, letting them get to know him. Eventually, Taehyung brought up the subject of Jungkook staying over. His parents looked a little apprehensive, but Taehyung was cute and persuasive and they let Jungkook spend the night.

It was one of the best evenings of Jungkook's life. They ordered takeaway so they could eat it up in Taehyung's room and they just sat on his bed eating and talking and laughing for ages. At some point, Jeong-Gyu asked if they wanted to play and, not having anything else on their minds, both agreed.

The Poke room was incredible. Hundreds of Pokémon plushies and so much other merchandise took up an entire room of the house. Jungkook pressed his lips together so he wouldn't squeal. Their playing spiralled into an elaborate make-believe universe with Pokémon and dragons and fairies. Jungkook was amused by how fast Taehyung adapted to this world but quickly became absorbed in it as well. Eon-Jin was forced to say goodnight at about eight and Jeong-Gyu got tired as well.

Taehyung and Jungkook stayed up long past that trying to be quieter. At around eleven, they decided to get changed and go to sleep. Taehyung's bed was only just big enough to fit them both, but they didn't mind. The last thing Jungkook remembered thinking before he went to sleep was how at home he felt and how he could never be out of place in Taehyung's arms.

**Please bear with me with updates I'm so very stressed jhdfkjsh I'll do my best though :')**


	42. Chapter 42 - JM

**Here have another chapter today bc I feel bad for not updating :)**

**42 - JM focus**

"Hyung, are you- "

"Get the fuck out." What? He was clearly upset; that's why Jimin asked in the first place. But why was Yoongi mad at him? "I can barely keep up with my classes as it is. Do you think I need you here distracting me? You should know better than that. I don't know if you want to make me fail, but I sure as hell don't need that. So I'll say it again: get the fuck out of my room. Get the fuck out of my dorm and get the fuck off my campus. I don't want to see you."

All Jimin could do was try not to cry. He nodded and did exactly what Yoongi told him to. He got the fuck out. He walked through Yoongi's dorm, ignoring the odd looks he got from his dormmates and made his way off the school grounds, tears helplessly spilling down his face.

What had he even done? Yoongi hadn't been in the best mood, that much was glaringly obvious. But Jimin was usually the one to cheer him up. All he had wanted was to see his boyfriend for the first time in a while and that was the reaction he was greeted with. Maybe he just didn't spark the same joy in him anymore.

He got back home and didn't eat; he didn't really feel like it, honestly. He just went to bed and tried to sleep off his sadness. It didn't work. He woke up late and got the bus straight away. A few minutes later, Taehyung appeared, smiling cheerfully. Jimin tried to put on a happy face for him.

"Morning, Jimin-ah!" Taehyung grinned and sat next to him. Jimin didn't even have time to say anything back before he asked, "What's wrong? I thought you were seeing Yoongi-hyung yesterday?" Jimin just sighed.

"Who said anything was wrong?" he tried and Taehyung smiled,

"I've known you for three years; I'm good at this. What's up?" he repeated and Jimin didn't want to say. He didn't want Taehyung's day to be worrisome from the very start.

"Nothing. It's fine," he lied, feeling insanely guilty. Taehyung tilted his head.

"Tell me at break?" That was a fair compromise. Jimin smiled slightly.

"Sure. How was your evening?" he asked, attempting to get the conversation back on track. Taehyung played along. He told a story about Yeontan that Jimin couldn't help but coo at. Yeontan was the cutest ball of fluff in the world and that was not a matter of opinion.

Break-time rolled around and Jimin was hoping that Taehyung had forgotten about it by now. He was proven wrong, however, when Taehyung and Jungkook sat down next to him and looked at him expectantly. Before Jimin could say a word, Jungkook said,

"I don't have to be here. I can go if you want…" Jimin shook his head.

"It's fine, really, it's nothing. I don't know why this is getting to me so much. I went to see Yoongi-hyung yesterday at his uni but he was at a class or something so he wasn't there. I just sat in his room until he came back but when he did… he was really upset. He'd been crying or something and I thought he'd be happy to see me but he just wasn't. He said he didn't want to see me and I was just a distraction to him and he swore at me and," Jimin paused as he said all of that in one breath.

"Minnie…" Taehyung consoled. Jimin ran his hand through his hair subconsciously.

"He just made me feel like nothing. Worthless, just a distraction. Do I really mean that little to him?" he asked, afraid of the answer.

"I'm sure he was just stressed. If you ask him what's up, he'll answer you. He trusts you with everything," Jungkook assured him but Jimin wasn't convinced.

"What if he's still mad, or doesn't want to talk to me?"

"Well, you didn't do anything wrong, so he has no reason to be mad at you," Taehyung reasoned and Jimin nodded.

"I guess… I'm gonna give it a few days. He never flips out like that, at least not at me. I'll wait until he cools down." This seemed like a brilliant plan at the time. It would give Jimin time to cheer up and give Yoongi time to come to his senses.

But when Jimin woke up on Monday, the day he was supposed to text Yoongi, he felt horrific. He was so hot and his head was flaring. Ignoring it, he got dressed (he was in 3rd grade; there was no skipping school), picked up his bag and walked to the bus stop.

Everything was sort of blurry. He sat down again and pressed his head against the nice cold window. It didn't help much. Then Taehyung was sitting next to him, asking what was wrong.

"…never get sick, Jimin, what's…" was all he could make out. He mumbled out something that he hoped sounded like "I'm fine," and managed to get to school.

He got through the first lesson without much trouble. He didn't remember what it was, but he remembered taking some notes on something. He would go through them later. He followed his classmate to a different room and sat down in his seat. _Physics_, his brain reminded him, _concentrate_. Jimin stared at the board and tried to make sense of what the teacher was saying but he couldn't focus. Everything hurt so much.

And then everything went black. He heard concerned intonations and felt suddenly light. He heard a familiar sound – Taehyung? – talking to him but Jimin didn't want to wake up. He felt himself be laid down and people leave the room. Not knowing where he was or what was happening, he just wanted to sleep. He woke up briefly and threw up over the side of wherever he was before passing out again.

When he woke up properly, he was in his bed with light streaming in through the curtains. He didn't know what had happened and blinked, trying to remember. Water dripped down his forehead and he felt a cloth drenched in lukewarm water that had been placed against his skin.

"Oh, sweetheart, you're awake!" his mother's voice said. He nodded slowly.

"Eomma, I need to go to school…" he whined, attempting to sit up but a hand on his chest stopped him.

"No, no, no, lie down. You've been unconscious for a day and a half. You've got a terrible fever and it won't break. I'm taking you to the hospital soon; just rest until then." Jimin conceded and nodded weakly. He did feel incredibly sick and he was still so, so hot. More sleep couldn't hurt, right?

He woke up every few hours to drink or eat or throw up and lost most of his sense of time. Until he was gently shaken awake and he reluctantly opened his eyes.

"Jungkook's calling. Do you want to talk to him?" Jimin nodded and felt a phone pressed to his ear.

_"Jimin? Hyung, are you okay?"_ came the concerned voice.

"Not really. Everything hurts so much, Kookie," he sniffed and Jungkook cooed down the phone.

_"You'll be okay soon. I just know it. We're all on your side, hyung!"_ he supported.

"And Yoongi-hyung? Is he there?" he moaned hopefully. Jungkook paused.

_"I think he's still at school. He'll be back soon though," _he reassured him.

"I miss him," Jimin pouted. He wanted his boyfriend.

_"He misses you, too, hyung. I've got to go back to class now, but I hope you get better soon!"_

"Tell Taehyung not to worry too much, okay?" he asked.

_"Will do. Bye, hyung! Rest well," _Jungkook told him and Jimin smiled,

"Thanks, Kookie. Bye!" and he promptly fell back asleep. What felt like a few minutes later, but could easily have been days, he was woken up again.

"Can you stand up, sweetheart? We need to go to the doctor's," his mother told him and he nodded. He got dressed and his skin was _still_ burning. He wasn't even sweating. He met his mother by the door and she helped him into the car. His phone buzzed in his pocket and he picked it up. He already had about six missed calls each from Jungkook and Taehyung plus a few from other friends. He answered the call.

"H-hello?" he asked tiredly.

_"Jimin? You're awake! How are you feeling?"_ came Taehyung's voice. Jimin smiled despite his condition.

"Just brilliant, Tae. My entire body is on fire and the concept of being awake makes me want to throw up," he answered truthfully.

_"Ah, hyung… what's wrong, do you know?"_

"I'm just going to the doctor's now. I'll tell you when you get out of class, okay?" he said.

_"Okay… get better soon, Jiminie!"_

"See you soon, Taehyungie!" he promised and hung up the phone. He felt a bit better after talking to him. He couldn't imagine how much better he'd feel after talking to Yoongi. Lost in thoughts, he hadn't realised that they were at the hospital.

Everything was blurry again. He was led into a room and poked with things, lights were shone in his face and really freezing cold stuff was put on his skin. He managed to listen to the diagnosis: heatstroke. That was fun. Explains why he felt his insides were boiling all of the time.

On the way home, his mother was talking to him about all the things he had to do to take care of himself and get better quickly. He interrupted her.

"Eomma, can I go see Yoongi-hyung?" he asked. His mother frowned.

"Why?" Jimin just shrugged,

"He wanted to know how I was," he lied. "Besides, he might make me feel better." His mother sighed and pulled into Yoongi's college. She offered to go with him but he assured her he could do it alone. He made his way across the campus, feeling stronger, and got permission from one of Yoongi's roommates to go inside. He climbed the stairs with some difficulty but reached their room, knocking with exhaustion. He should have drunk something.

Yoongi opened the door and Jimin collapsed into his arms.


	43. Chapter 43 - YG

I barely had time to process that Jimin needed catching before he was unconscious in my arms. Fuck. What the hell was making him so sick? I felt guilty as if I had done this to him instead of whatever sickness he had. I shook him, trying to wake him up, but it didn't work. Tears escaped my eyes and I just wanted him to be okay.

His phone rang. I lay him carefully on the floor and fished through his pockets to find it. It was his mom. Bracing myself for whatever would happen, I answered it.

"Hello?"

_"Ah, is he okay?_" his mom asked and I shook my head before remembering that it was a phone call.

"N-no, not really. He's sort of unconscious," was all I could tell her.

_"I knew this would happen, it's okay. What dorm is it, dear?"_ she asked and I told her quickly. As soon as I did, a woman walked down the corridor and hung up her phone. I put Jimin's down as well and smiled in relief.

"H-he just fell…" I explained and she crouched down to feel his forehead.

"You must be Min Yoongi. It's nice to meet you," she smiled and I returned it as best I could. She stroked Jimin's hair and he groaned slightly. "Poor thing's got heatstroke," she sighed. "Come on, let's get him inside. Need help lifting him?" she asked and I shook my head. I was small but so was Jimin. I put one arm behind his neck and the other behind his knees. I was about to carry him to my bedroom before I remembered the state my room was in. I laid him on the couch instead.

I sat on the floor and looked at him sleeping. I missed him. So much. His smooth skin, his pink lips, his pretty hands. His eyes, despite being closed and creased with discomfort, were still beautiful. I ran my hand through his hair, knowing it always calmed him down. His mother placed a glass of water on the table for when he woke up and we watched him together.

"He should have known he was still sick. I only trusted him to walk that far by himself because I knew he'd be safe by the end. Besides, he really wanted to see you," she told me. I just gazed at him, wishing for him to wake up.

"Really?" I asked. He had really missed me back. Even after I said all those things, he still missed me. What a loving boy. I couldn't ask for a better boyfriend. His mom giggled slightly at the sight of me being totally whipped for her unconscious son and I blushed.

"It's nice to finally meet you, Yoongi," she smiled. Her smile looked just like Jimin's.

"You too, Miss Park." It was silent for a while and I thanked the stars that Jimin was there to give me a distraction.

"I'll tell you what," she began, "I'll leave him to sleep here for a while. He really wanted to see you and I'm not sure he'd appreciate it if he woke up at home. Call me when he wakes up and I'll come and get him. Will you be okay with that? You just need to make sure he stays hydrated and cool." I stared. I now saw where Jimin got all of his unconditional kindness from.

"Yes, that sounds fine. Thank you," I said, trying to hold back a grin. She stood up and I walked her the ten feet to the door. I bowed and she left, leaving me alone in the living room with Jimin. I walked back to him and knelt down next to the sofa. I held his hand and he didn't hold mine back.

"Jiminie," I whispered, "can you wake up for me? I need to say sorry and I can't do that when you're asleep. Just open your eyes, please." As much as I tried to coax him into waking up, he didn't. I felt his forehead and it was burning. I jumped up and ran to the kitchen. I soaked a cloth in cool water and wrung it out slightly. I ran back and carefully placed it on his skin. He flinched and whimpered, still unconscious. I laughed softly and sat next to him.

About an hour later, Jimin wasn't awake. He made small noises occasionally, telling me he was okay, but nothing other than that. The door opened and one of my roommates walked in. He looked at me curiously.

"Is he… good?" he asked cautiously and I nodded, turning my attention back to Jimin. He was so pretty that I felt like hiding his face so my roommate didn't accidentally fall in love with him.

A few minutes later, Jimin's phone rang again. Feeling slightly offended that I was less popular than the unconscious kid, I answered it.

_"Jimin! Gosh, that was quick!"_ came Jungkook's voice. I smiled at it.

"Not Jimin, Kook. Try again," I told him and there was silence.

_"…Yoongi-hyung? Why do you have Jimin's phone?"_ he asked.

"He… can't really answer it by himself. He's a little bit unconscious at the moment," I stated and Jungkook gasped,

_"Oh my God, is he okay?"_ I smirked,

"He's unconscious," I repeated and Jungkook stuttered. I decided to not be salty; this was one of Jungkook's best friends in the world. "He's got heatstroke and he's just resting at the moment," I answered.

_"Heatstroke? How the hell did he manage that?"_ Jungkook asked, confused and quite rightly so; it hadn't actually been that hot. I sighed fondly,

"He's a very special boy." Jungkook hummed his agreement. Something shifted. Jimin's hand constricted against mine and he rolled over slightly to face me. His eyes fluttered open and took a second to focus. He smiled. "Jungkook, hold on a second," I said and put the phone down. I tilted my head and smiled at Jimin. "Hi there, sleepyhead. Dream of me?" He hummed and grinned wider. Dear God, I missed him.

"I missed you," Jimin whispered as if reading my mind. He leaned in closer and kissed me softly. I kissed him back. It was a weird angle, but loving. It clocked in my brain how dry his lips were and I pulled back, making him whine. I smirked as I knew that was involuntary. I reached to get the water and gave it to him. He sat up and drank almost all of it in one go. I watched proudly.

"Good boy," I praised as I took it off him and kissed him again. Quiet shouting from Jimin's phone distracted me and I pulled away again, flipping it in my hand.

_"Hey! Don't ignore me!"_ Jungkook whined and I rolled my eyes.

"Calm down, brat, he just woke up. Wanna talk to him?"

_"Yes!"_ he shouted impatiently in my ear and I smirked.

"I wasn't talking to you. Jimin-ah, do you want to talk to Taehyung's brat?"

_"Hey!"_ Jungkook squeaked as Jimin sighed,

"Do I really have to say yes?" he asked.

_"Yes, you do! Come on, hyung, I've been worried sick. You didn't call me or Taehyung after your appointment."_ Jimin signalled and I pressed the phone to his ear.

"I wanted to see my boyfriend first. Then I passed out for… how long?" he asked me. I looked at my watch.

"Um… just over an hour," I told him and he laughed softly.

"Whoops. But, yeah, I'm just hot and thirsty right now," he continued and I smirked,

"What else is new?" I mumbled and he tried to hit me but it felt more like a weak tap. Jimin and Jungkook continued their conversation and I just watched. I was so happy that he was awake and here. Eventually, Jungkook hung up and Jimin noticed me just staring at him. He blushed self-consciously but I didn't look away. I kissed him lightly and he kissed me back.

"I'm glad you're okay, hyung," he whispered and I remembered that I hated myself.

"I'm sorry, Minnie. I was so stressed and I didn't mean to yell at you. I didn't mean to make you feel like that at all and I just- " Jimin cut me off by pecking my lips again.

"Stop talking. I want to kiss you," he stated and I grinned.

"Anything, prince." Our lips connected again and I didn't want to pull away. I think another one of my roommates walked through at some point, but neither of us paid them any attention. We were lost in each other's touch. It had been too long since I kissed him last.

This time, my phone rang. Jimin groaned and I couldn't tell if he was annoyed or turned on. I pulled back anyway and saw Namjoon calling me. I also saw that it was about half-five in the afternoon, which I didn't expect. I was about to answer when I remembered,

"Oh, Jimin, you need to call your mom and tell her you're up." He nodded and picked up his phone while I answered mine.

"Yeah?"

_"Hey, hyung. Listen, we met up with Hoseok and his girlfriend for the double date,"_ he told me and I sighed.

"You interrupted me making out with Jimin for this?" I asked impatiently.

_"I thought he was sick?"_ Namjoon asked, confused.

"Not infectious. He just passes out occasionally. Anyway, what is it?"

_"Oh. Well, you know how none of us has ever met Hobi's girlfriend?"_ I just huffed in response so he'd hurry up. He got the message. _"Well, she's not… what any of us expected. It's Lee Seohyun."_


	44. Chapter 44 - RM

**I triple checked for formatting issues this time who's proud**

**_44 – RM focus_**

"Um, Hoseok?" Namjoon asked, watching as an enthusiastic Lee Seohyun greeted a confused Seokjin. Hoseok watched fondly but hummed in response. "Is that Seohyun? As in, went to our high school, Seohyun?" Hoseok nodded in confirmation and Namjoon couldn't even begin to list the things that were wrong and weird about that.

"Isn't she pretty? Head cheerleader, remember? She transferred to my senior dance class when we graduated. You know the reason she wasn't at graduation? She was auditioning to become a trainee at SM! She's so gorgeous and talented, she'll surely have gotten in," he gushed and Namjoon just stared at him.

"Okay, but- "

"Kim Namjoon! I haven't seen you in far too long!" Seohyun beamed and hugged him, a far too familiar gesture for random ex-classmates. "How have you been?" she asked, looking him over. Namjoon blushed,

"Uh, not bad, you? You look fantastic," he complimented and he felt a momentary glare as Hoseok forgot and then remembered that Namjoon was gay. Seohyun flicked her hair bashfully.

"Well, I've got to keep my figure. I'm a little late to be auditioning as a trainee, but my hard-work should pay off," she shrugged hopefully. Hoseok wrapped his arm around her shoulder proudly and kissed her, giving Namjoon time to shoot a glance at Seokjin, who looked equally as taken aback.

Seohyun's crush on Yoongi was well-documented throughout… well, everywhere. She had confessed to him at least four times within a year and a half, even once just after Yoongi had been outed. This was a girl who didn't give up easily. And as she asked,

"And how's Min Yoongi?" Namjoon realised that she still hadn't. Hoseok, however, seemed to suspect absolutely nothing. Odd. Hoseok was their little matchmaker; he could sense who people liked if people were faking love or head over heels. It seemed weird that he couldn't see this. He just smiled and helped Seohyun into her seat as Namjoon and Seokjin took theirs.

"She's crazy," Seokjin hissed quietly and Namjoon nodded.

"If this isn't a joke, we're gonna have to tell him," he agreed. They smiled politely at the couple sitting opposite.

"So, how did you two actually get together?" Seokjin asked, "Hobi never told us." Seohyun grinned and looped her arm enthusiastically though Hoseok's.

"Well, I was practising late one night for my audition after their dance class had finished but Hobi-ah forgot his water bottle so he came back in to get it," she explained. "I didn't even notice he was there until I, being the clumsy little thing I am, tripped over my own feet. He caught me like some prince and helped me with the rest of the dance. Then one thing led to another and…" she trailed off, staring into Hoseok's eyes, who gazed lovingly back.

"We started going out," he finished. "I was going to tell you guys and arrange an actual meet-up at some point but there was never a good time, what with the song practice and everyone getting together. Oh, that reminds me, how are Yoongi-hyung and Jimin?" At this, Seohyun turned her head quickly and frowned,

"I didn't know they were…_together_-together." Hoseok nodded, as did Seokjin and Namjoon. She shrugged, "Hm. That's cute." The waiter came to take their order and stop them being any more awkward. Seokjin started tracing lines on Namjoon's thigh; lines that spelt out the word 'crazy'. He nodded, agreeing with the sentiment but also confirming their order to the waiter.

Conversation (thankfully) turned off high school life for a while and went straight into college life instead. Namjoon thanked the stars that he had chosen a boyfriend who could talk and pretend to listen for hours on end. All Namjoon had to do was fill in the gaps and make a joke every once in a while. Other than that, he could let Seokjin take the wheel. He was so much more of a people person.

So when Hoseok said he had to use the bathroom, Namjoon went with him, leaving Seokjin to keep Seohyun company for a while. Namjoon was nervous for this confrontation but he knew it had to be done.

"Hoseok…" he tried and Hoseok looked up. "About Seohyun…" he began but Hoseok interrupted,

"Isn't she the best? I did say you'd love her! She and Seokjin-hyung hit it off really well, don't you think?" he grinned and Namjoon sighed tensely.

"Look, we just think…"

"What? What's wrong with her?" Hoseok challenged. Namjoon refused to cower. He took a deep breath and admitted,

"She doesn't love you." Hoseok scoffed,

"What? How could you tell me that?" He looked faintly amused and Namjoon tried to get across that this was serious.

"Seok, please. I'm telling the truth," he repeated and Hoseok folded his arms.

"And how would you know? You've known her, what, two hours?"

"I've known her for three years- "

"Not like I have. You never even spoke to her in high school and now you're acting like you know so much more about her than I do? Quit it. Why else would she go out with me? I love her and she loves me back."

"Are you sure?" Namjoon pushed, staying calm. "Or is she still in love with Yoongi-hyung?" he asked and Hoseok rolled his eyes.

"God, can't you let that go? That whole thing was- "

"Literally six months ago and it lasted for three times that long," Namjoon pointed out and Hoseok squared up.

"No, shut up. Don't you think I, of all people, knew that she was in love with Yoongi-hyung? I was the Cupid of our high school. I got Taehyung and Jungkook together when they would have been too scared to even touch before that. I got Yoongi-hyung and Jimin to talk when neither said a word to the other for two years. You two were easily the most frustrating. All that fucking pining and I finally got Jin-hyung to be brave. I got you to where you are now and this is how you repay me? By telling me my relationship is fake? Really good thanks there, Joon. Much appreciated."

"Please, I didn't mean- "

"You know what? No. I'm not sitting back out there and have you two judge us like this, especially since you don't know a thing about us. I don't need this and neither does Seohyun. I'm out of here." And with that, Hoseok stormed out. Namjoon, still shocked, followed after him.

He got back to the table to see Hoseok putting on his coat and picking up Seohyun's bag.

"Come on, Hyunnie, we're going," he told her and she looked bewildered.

"What? Why? Is something wrong?" she asked and Hoseok glared at the other couple.

"No, but my friends are pricks. I don't want you spending any more time with them and I don't want to either."

"Really…?" Seohyun pouted, looking apologetically at Seokjin. "Why?" Hoseok shook his head.

"It doesn't matter. I don't want them insulting you anymore."

"Wh-" Seokjin tried to protest but Hoseok stared him down before he could say another word and deadpanned,

"You're paying."


	45. Chapter 45 - JH

_**45 – JH focus**_

How dare they? Honestly, how dare they? The question dominated Hoseok's thoughts as he took Seohyun's hand and pulled her out of the restaurant. He was the one who got them together, he was the one who made them happy and then they go and try to destroy his relationship. Hoseok was glad that he loved Seohyun so much; he would never doubt her.

"Hobi-oppa..." Seohyun whined and Hoseok looked round. He didn't like to see or hear his girlfriend in distress. "You're hurting my wrist…" she admitted and Hoseok immediately let go.

"Oh my God, sorry," he said immediately and Seohyun giggled at him. He smiled back at her. "I'm not sorry for taking you out of there, though. I want you safe." Seohyun held his hand and swung it as they started walking again.

"I know. What did he even do?" she asked and Hoseok laughed.

"He tried to make me doubt you. He called you a liar for some reason. Obviously, I didn't believe him," he assured her and she laughed again. God, it was magical.

"Why would I lie to you? I love you." She pecked him on the cheek and Hoseok blushed, grinning.

"I love you, too." He would never doubt Seohyun. He really did love her. He was so happy that their cute couple story was authentic and unplanned, unlike all his friends' ones.

Hoseok used to look at Seohyun a lot. He knew she loved Yoongi and that didn't bother him. Until, one day, it did. He didn't tell anyone, but he admired her grace, her gorgeousness, her adorable demeanour. He wished that she would pay attention to him instead of Yoongi but it just didn't happen. And then it did.

Hoseok saw her trip and was immediately at her side to catch her. He was worried he would come across as desperate or eager but she flushed. Embarrassed, Hoseok decided to help her with the rest of her dance. She was madly talented, he knew that.

The final bar ended and she spun around quickly to face him, hands on his chest. Her hair smelled amazing. She looked him in the eyes and kissed him so gently that Hoseok wasn't even sure it was real. It was smooth and soft. Hoseok was becoming even more certain that Seohyun was a fairy in human form.

Their relationship spiralled in secret. Seohyun stopped flirting with other guys, even Yoongi, at Hoseok's request. He didn't have time to tell the others until so much later into their relationship, what with everyone else's relationships taking up so much of their time. He didn't tell anyone until after Christmas.

She hadn't mentioned Yoongi, or so much as looked at him since they had started going out and Hoseok was convinced that she was over him. Even if she wasn't, he would be the best boyfriend ever and make her forget all about that small pianist.

Hoseok walked Seohyun back to her campus. They didn't go to the same school, but they weren't too far away. They often stayed over at each other's dorms and it was so perfect. Especially since Seohyun's roommates were never in. They stayed out on weeknights to help each other study and go on dates and things. Leaving the apartment free for Hoseok and Seohyun to enjoy for themselves.

"You know," Seohyun mused, putting down her bag, "seeing you be all tough was kinda hot," she smiled and Hoseok laughed, moving closer.

"Really?" he asked, wrapping his hands around her back.

"Kinda really hot," she confessed, her arms encircling Hoseok's neck. He kissed her once and she kissed him once back before they kissed for real. Hoseok didn't know what lip gloss she used but it was delicious. He could taste her forever.

He pushed her back gently to the wall, taking a more dominant stance than he was used to. The kiss became deeper and she tugged lightly on his hair. Hoseok moved his mouth away from hers and sucked on her neck, making her let out a shaky breath. He liked that he had that effect on her. He traced a line up her spine and dragged his nails back down again. She moaned and he bit down on her skin.

"Y-Yoongi-oppa…" she breathed and Hoseok froze. What the fuck? He detached his lips from her neck and she whined at the loss of contact. Hoseok let his hands fall as well and that made her open her eyes. And realise her mistake. "Oppa, I didn't- " Hoseok just didn't want to hear this. Or anything from her mouth again.

"Save it. I'm leaving," he announced and walked out the door. In a way, he was proud of himself for not crying while he was still in the room. Tears spilt from his eyes as he walked off her campus, hailing a cab to get back to his own.

He couldn't believe any of this. He wanted to believe that he had misheard her. That she hadn't moaned fucking Min Yoongi's name. But he knew it had really happened, as much as that killed him. He was such an idiot. An idiot for falling for her. An idiot for not seeing this. An idiot for believing she had really changed.

An idiot for not believing Namjoon and Seokjin. Goddamn, he was going to have to admit he was wrong. And he would honestly rather do that now than later. If they knew he was crying, they were less likely to laugh at him, right? Still doubting his life and scolding himself for being such a whipped and blind human being, he picked up his phone and dialled Namjoon.

It took a minute for him to answer, during which time Hoseok fell into a panic. What if Namjoon was really mad at him? What if he wanted to cut ties because of his relationship and what Hoseok had said? So much was going wrong that he could believe that. He was so gullible anyway. Namjoon's voice sounding through the phone solved that panic.

"Heya, Hobi," he answered nonchalantly and Hoseok was silent for a while.

"Aren't you going to ask why I'm calling?" he asked and Namjoon hummed in confusion,

"Actually, I was waiting for you to yell at me some more. What's up?" he said and Hoseok felt so insanely guilty.

"Joon, I'm really sorry for saying all that stuff, I- are you eating?" he asked, noticing the faint chewing sounds.

"Oh? Yeah, we're still at the restaurant. You said we were paying so we decided to make the most of it," he told Hoseok, who sighed.

"I'm sorry. I'll pay you back, I swear. Seohyun has… expensive taste," he cringed.

"Aren't you with her?" Namjoon questioned, confused. Hoseok paused trying not to cry more. "Take a breath," Namjoon told him, sensing his pain. Hoseok waited until no more tears threatened to come out and explained,

"Well, I walked her back to her dorm and it was fine. Her roommates are never in so we had the place to ourselves. We started to get…" he stopped out of awkwardness rather than pain, "intimate and then… she moaned Yoongi's name," he admitted, as a wave of nausea hit him. She was such a disgusting person for using him like that and he hated himself and her equally.

"Oh my God, I'm sorry, Hoseok," Seokjin's voice gasped. Hoseok shook his head.

"No, hyung, it's okay. You tried to tell me and I didn't listen to you. I'm just ashamed that I fell for her."

"Don't beat yourself up over this too much, okay?" Namjoon advised. "We've all been in love, as you know better than anyone. They do say that Cupid was blind, after all." Hoseok managed to laugh.

"Thanks." The cab pulled up outside the campus and he thought for a second. "Do you guys want to meet me at a bar? I want to drink."

"Of course," was Seokjin's immediate response. "Rapture?" he suggested and Hoseok smiled.

"Perfect. I'll meet you there." He hung up and redirected the driver to the most thriving student bar in the city. He arrived and paid the driver before leaning against the building and waiting for Seokjin and Namjoon. He was thinking about getting a drink first but decided against it. He didn't want to drink alone. Not tonight.

Thankfully, they didn't take long. Hoseok hugged them hard. Not all friends would be willing to ditch a date to hang out with a guy who called them ungrateful liars not long ago.

They were about to go in when someone burst out of the door, stumbling out into the street. They would have fallen over if Seokjin hadn't caught them. Taken aback, he tried to stand them up safely before letting them fall again. He looked shocked. Speechless, he turned to the others, the insanely drunk person still in his arms.

"It's Jungkook."

**A/N: yall are not ready for the next bunch of chapters there is some *major* drama about to happen in like 4 chapters ish I'm sorry in advance lol**


	46. Chapter 46 - V

**_46 – V focus_**

Taehyung was sitting at his desk, trying to focus on his homework rather than the train wreck of a day he had been through. Jimin hadn't been on the bus, understandably. Jimin almost never got sick, so his absence was loud and distracting.

Even Jungkook hadn't been waiting at the gates like he normally would. Taehyung waited until the last second to wait for him, seeing if he'd missed the bus and constantly checking his phone for a text or a call that just didn't come. Taehyung begrudgingly ran into school and was scolded for being late.

Jungkook was nowhere to be found at break, either. Taehyung tried texting him again, trying in vain to get an explanation. He wasn't careful enough. A teacher saw him and confiscated his phone almost immediately, not letting Taehyung even press send.

The next lessons dragged on. Taehyung had barely said a word all day and it was killing him to feel this alone. Finally, the bell rang to release him from his class and he trudged off to lunch.

He sat by the lockers, feeling lonely and sorry for himself. He didn't want to eat, he didn't want to sing, he didn't really want to do anything. He wanted to fake being sick and go home. It was difficult to convince himself that was a bad idea. Usually, Jungkook would do that.

"Taehyung!"

Speak of the fucking devil. Taehyung's head snapped up to the familiar voice and saw Jungkook waltzing down the hallway towards him. Taehyung leapt up and ran to hug him. He needed this on a day like today. This was the first person he had wanted to talk to for around 12 hours and it was so refreshing. And yet, Taehyung couldn't say a word.

"Hyung, are you okay?" Jungkook asked, questioning the overly long and silent hug. Taehyung had always been a social bean and it had drained him to be so quiet for so long. No one had given him any warning or explanation and it had just been so hard. But now, it didn't have to be.

"Kookie, where were you?" he implored and pulled away, ignoring the glances from their schoolmates. Jungkook flushed,

"It's kind of a long story. Can we go under the stairs?" he asked. Taehyung nodded and held Jungkook's hand all the way there, not wanting to let him out of his grip. They got under the stairs and Taehyung just sighed. Jungkook looked down.

"Hyung, I'm sorry for leaving you alone. Are you okay?" he asked cautiously. Taehyung smiled and rested his head on Jungkook's shoulder.

"Yeah, you're here now," he replied.

"You aren't… mad?" Jungkook prompted and Taehyung shook his head.

"No. I'm sure you had a good reason, whatever it was." Jungkook was probably about to start explaining himself when his phone rang. It was Seokjin and Namjoon inviting them on a double date. Taehyung was all for this; he hadn't seen them in a while and it would be cool to go out and catch up with them. However…

"Hyung," Jungkook whispered, "I've got exams. I can't go out tonight." Dammit. Inwardly disappointed, Taehyung pouted and whispered,

"Fine, but you're telling them." He phased out while Jungkook was making excuses and felt his heart sink. Today was not it. At all. Jungkook showed him the time and Taehyung nodded to let him say goodbye. He was upset to have to go back to being alone but he gave Jungkook the biggest hug. The younger giggled,

"What was that for?" Taehyung looked him straight in the eye.

"I love you. So much." Jungkook stared back. Whatever he was about to say was cut off by the bell screaming at them to leave. Jungkook settled for kissing him and walking him to his next lesson in silence. Taehyung didn't know if something was wrong but he hated Jungkook being silent. It was unnerving, especially after a whole day of nothing. Taehyung stepped into his classroom and tried not to think until he got home.

Now he was home, he was still not thinking. It was just one of those days that pissed him off by existing. The bit with Jungkook was nice. The rest of it hurt. He just wanted to get his homework done, go to sleep and let the day end.

Then his phone rang. It was Hoseok. Smiling (a talk with sunshine was exactly what Taehyung needed right now), he answered the call. Before he could say a word, he was attacked with noise.

_"Taehyung?"_ his phone blared. Taehyung flinched but answered,

"Hyung? Where are you? It's so loud." Hoseok said nothing. "Hyung?"

_"So… you aren't here?"_ he asked. Taehyung laughed,

"I don't know where you are! I'm at home. Where are you?" he asked again.

_"Rapture. But if you aren't here, then why the hell… shit, Tae, I'll call you back."_ The call ended abruptly, leaving Taehyung thoroughly confused. Not really in the mood to work anymore, he tried texting someone else. The first name that came up was Namjoon, so he tried that.

**_Tae:_**_ Hobi-hyung's somewhere weird, what's going on?_

The response was near enough immediate.

**_Joon-hyung:_**_ How far away do you live from club rapture?_

**_Tae:_**_ um like 5 mins why_

**_Tae: _**_what's going on?_

**_Joon-hyung:_**_ that's what we're trying to figure out_

**_Joon-hyung:_**_ just get here fast_

Terrified that something was badly wrong, Taehyung jumped up, grabbed his jacket and ran out the back door. Rapture was the student club down the road from him. The last call was at 3 am, and that's often how Taehyung judged the time when he was up late; the influx of drunk students on his road caused a lot of noise.

He ran through the dark streets until he could see the glaring neon sign sparkling, _RAPTURE_. He walked up to the entrance, trying to stay away from the dodgy-looking people. He looked around until he saw Seokjin waving at him a few yards away. He jogged over, confused. No one had to say a word for him to understand what happened.

A complaining, struggling Jungkook had his arms pinned behind his back by a very done-looking Hoseok. Jungkook lurched forward and Namjoon pushed him back like he was expecting it. Taehyung stared.

"W-what?" he mumbled and Seokjin sighed,

"Your guess is as good as ours." Taehyung went over and looked Jungkook in the eyes like before. They were different from the focused and clear ones Taehyung was familiar with.

"This isn't right. How did you- "

"SO NO ONE TOLD YOU LIFE WAS GONNA BE THIS WAYYYY," Taehyung was cut off by Jungkook loudly singing the Friends' theme. He again tried to wriggle away, presumably to do the clapping bit. "Lemme gooo," he complained and everyone tried not to laugh. Taehyung reminded himself and continued,

"How did you find him?"

"Us three came here to unwind but we barely got through the door before he crashed into us. He's drunk off his mind and God knows how he got served," Namjoon muttered.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Taehyung whined, exasperated.

"I went in to see if you were with him and I- " Hoseok tried.

"Why would I be with him?!" Taehyung interrupted loudly. It had been a long day and it was so far from over. Why couldn't things just go his way? It was frustrating and annoying and maddening and-

"Tae, are you okay?" Taehyung hadn't even realised he was crying. He just didn't want this. Seokjin pulled him into a hug and Taehyung thanked God he was so tall. He was comfy.

"Hey, no, I wanna, I wanna hug too!" Jungkook slurred, making Taehyung cringe. It was sweet, though. He turned around and hugged him too. Hoseok let go of his arms and Taehyung felt Jungkook's weight being passed to him. He was heavy and smelled of alcohol but he was warm. Out of nowhere, he heard a mumble of,

"I love you." Taehyung was in the kind of mood where he didn't know whether to believe that or not. Despite this, he whispered,

"I love you too." He pulled back and fixed Jungkook's hair, who was standing with a ditzy smile on his face. "Guys, I'm gonna take him back to mine. I have a spare uniform for him and I can ask him what the fuck he thinks he's doing when he wakes up," he told the others.

"Are you sure?" Namjoon asked. "Won't your parents mind?" Taehyung shook his head.

"They won't notice. I can keep him quiet," he assured them.

"Do you need help getting him home?" Hoseok offered.

"No, it's okay, it's not far. You guys go have fun. Call me if you find Jimin somewhere in there as well," he smiled. Seokjin laughed and wished him luck. Jungkook was leaning heavily on Taehyung as they walked away but Taehyung didn't really care. He just wanted Jungkook to be safe and preferably sober by the morning.

"Taehyungieeeee," Jungkook whined. Taehyung smiled at how cute he was. Normally, Jungkook would try to keep a mature persona. Apparently, that filter disappeared when he was drunk.

"Yes Kookie?" he answered, trying to stay calm.

"I really, I really like that, you being here," he just about said.

"I don't like you being here," Taehyung stated honestly. Jungkook looked heartbroken.

"But, but, I love you," he pouted sadly. Taehyung smiled,

"I love you too, but I hate the fact that you're here and you're like this. You're going to have a lot of explaining to do in the morning." Jungkook giggled.

"Future me is gonna, gonna be in so, so much trouble." Taehyung sighed. He didn't know what Jungkook had done but it can't have been good at all.

It took them ten minutes to get to Taehyung's house, as opposed to the three minutes it took Taehyung to run there. As quietly as he could, Taehyung opened the back door and, in a flash of confidence, swept Jungkook into his arms to carry him upstairs; it would have taken forever otherwise.

He lay Jungkook on his bed and tucked him in like a child. While trying to decide whether to sleep in the same bed as a drunk and probably very cuddly Jungkook, the younger made grabby hands at Taehyung.

"C'mere," he whimpered so adorably that Taehyung had no choice but to comply. He lay beside Jungkook, missing the coherency in his eyes.

"You're in so much trouble," he whispered. Jungkook grinned,

"I love you too."


	47. Chapter 47 - JK

****A genuine thing that happened in my school don't at me lol****

**_47 – JK focus_**

Light burned through Jungkook's eyelids and ignited his brain with the worst fire he had ever felt. Curling up to try and stop the evil sun, Jungkook found himself to be insanely thirsty. At the same time, he thought that if he ingested anything, he would throw up. He felt like doing anything would make him feel sick.

A ringing pierced his head. He audibly groaned, the vibrations almost shattering his already fragile skull. It wasn't until he rolled over that something clicked in his head – that wasn't his alarm and this wasn't his bed. He opened his eyes cautiously and let out a relieved sigh when he saw that he recognised the bedsheets. At least he was with Taehyung.

Speaking of Taehyung, where was he? From under the covers, Jungkook could tell that he was alone in the bed. Bracing himself for the influx of light, Jungkook pulled back the duvet carefully. Although it was less bright than he expected, it still made his head pound. Something was blocking the sun. And that something was Taehyung.

He was in his school uniform, his hair just as chaotic as always. His arms were folded and he was staring Jungkook straight in the eyes but he didn't look angry. He just looked upset. Disappointed.

"You don't look good, Jungkook," he said simply. Jungkook hated himself and he didn't even remember a lot of what had happened yesterday. He tried to respond but his throat apparently hated him as well. Taehyung sighed and dropped his arms. "I'll get you some water," he offered despondently and walked out.

Jungkook rolled onto his back and rubbed his eyes. He felt so bad in so many ways. Taehyung was annoyed with him, he was annoyed with himself, he felt like sitting in a dark room and sleeping for the rest of eternity and there wasn't a single part of his body not in pain. Not a premium morning. Taehyung returned with a glass of water which Jungkook sipped cautiously, trying not to anger his stomach. Taehyung sat on the floor and watched him silently.

"What did I do last night?" Jungkook asked quietly, feeling far too young to be saying that. Taehyung rolled his eyes and sat back, leaning on his hands and looking at Jungkook coldly.

"You tell me." Of course he wouldn't make this easy. Jungkook exhaled and tried hard to think. He started in the morning.

"I met up with one of my friends in the morning. I say friend; he's just in my class. His name's Mingyu. We're kind of tight but we don't talk a lot. We were talking on the bus and he asked if I wanted to go to the store with him before school. I said yes so we got off the bus early. We went to a store I'd never seen before but he looked like he knew it so I didn't say anything.

Then he did something weird. He bought a bottle of soju. He had a fake ID and it was very illegal but I didn't say anything because… I don't know why. I just didn't. He asked me if I'd ever drunk before and I said a bit, which was a lie. He offered me some and I said no because we had to get to school. He just laughed and said we didn't have to go to school. He said it wasn't an important day and we could just bunk.

I wanted to say no, I really did. There was a lot wrong with this but I didn't object to it. I wanted to go in and see you and the rest of my friends but I couldn't leave him or he'd probably tell people things about me. He's that type of person. We went to the park and he drank a bit. So did I. Only a bit so he wouldn't pressure me and I felt so guilty and he said that the more you drink, the less bad it feels. I'm worried about him.

I bailed on him and lied and said I had to talk to my biology teacher about something urgently. I got the bus and got back to school a little after break ended so I couldn't say hi to you until lunch. I had detention for being late and as soon as I was out, I went to find you. You looked so lonely and it broke my heart. I remembered Mingyu telling me how drinking makes guilt better and I wondered if it worked. I wanted to try it but I knew no one would let me. When Seokjin-hyung called, I didn't know what to say. I didn't want to disappoint you more but I also felt horrible about myself.

After school, I ran out and got home as quick as I could. Mingyu had told me about this bar that doesn't check IDs because they get so many underage-looking students there that it's a waste of time. So I went there. I was nervous as hell but I went and got a drink. It felt so grown-up and I kind of liked it. I remembered how awful the day had been and just started drinking. It was weird. Mingyu was right. The more I drank, the more I just forgot things.

I don't remember much. I sort of remember Seokjin-hyung and the others being there and then you happened and then… nothing. It's really blurry but I still hate myself for it. I'm so sorry, hyung. I know this was dumb and stupid and reckless and dangerous and I swear I won't do it again."

Taehyung listened to all of this with detached patience. It was silent and Jungkook wished he would just say something, anything. He didn't want this to break them.

"I forgive you," Taehyung whispered. Jungkook stared.

"You… you do?" he clarified and Taehyung looked up at him, smiling.

"I trust you. You had a bad day, I get that. You need to tell someone about Mingyu, though. It sounds odd, but the facts are, he technically encouraged you to self-harm. He told you that the solution to feeling bad was to drink when he was the reason you were feeling bad in the first place."

"Tae, I- "

"I know you won't do it again. And if you do, I'll forgive you then as well. It's not going to help you if you think I don't love you anymore because of this." Jungkook wanted to cry. Taehyung was being so mature and kind about this all and Jungkook just wanted him in his life forever. "There's one thing I want, though," Taehyung added. Jungkook was all ears. "Tell me you love me. Just once," he mumbled with a melancholy undertone. Jungkook reached out his hand.

"Hyung, I love you so much. I can't put into words how happy I am that you're here right now. I'm never going to leave you again, I swear. I need you to stay with me as well," he professed and his heart leapt at the smile on Taehyung's lips.

"I've got a spare uniform. Put it on and let's get you to school. Namjoon-hyung said your bag was in the club's lost property and he'll drop it off later." Jungkook hugged Taehyung tightly, the relief of being taken care of overwhelming.

"What the hell would I do without you?"

**A/N: I HAVE NOTHING AGAINST KIM MINGYU. In fact, he's my SVT bias and a lovely human being. However, in an attempt to keep everyone's ages consistent, I had to include an idol born 1996/7 for this. It just so happened that Mingyu was the first person on my mind :/**


	48. Chapter 48 - YG

**_48 – YG perspective_**

I woke up the next morning annoyingly early. It was about 11 am, too early for lunch. I lay back in bed and checked my phone lazily. A text from Jimin instantly made me smile. God, that was a good feeling. I unlocked my phone and read,

**_Jimiminie:_**_ hyung, I feel better today :)_

**_Jimiminie: _**_thanks for taking care of me yesterday, I had a great time_

**_Jimiminie:_**_ do you wanna meet up later_

**_Jimiminie:_**_ if you don't have classes of course_

**_Mine: _**_not important classes_

**_Jimiminie:_**_ youre gonna fail college_

**_Mine:_**_ I way prefer you to lectures_

**_Jimiminie: _**_lol not what you said last time_

**_Mine:_**_ …_

**_Mine: _**_too soon_

**_Jimiminie: _**_agreed lmao that hurt_

**_Mine:_**_ im sorry_

**_Jimiminie:_**_ make it up to me by buying me starbucks x_

**_Mine:_**_ omw_

**_Jimiminie:_**_ best bf_

**_Mine:_**_ no u_

Still smiling dumbly at my phone, I jumped out of bed, forgetting everything about being tired. I got dressed quickly but as nicely as possible in ripped jeans and Jimin's favourite hoodie (he'd stolen it so many times by now it smelled of him) and left the dorm. I was missing a Japanese class but I didn't really care.

It took me about ten minutes to speed-walk to Starbucks. I had sort of forgotten it was nearly November and I regretted not wearing intact jeans instead. I was thankful for central heating when I got there as my body immediately flushed. Well, central heating and Park Jimin.

He still didn't look great. He was red, accentuated by his favourite red jacket, and he looked so tired that I regretted agreeing to come here on some level. On second thoughts, I would have still gone to see him today anyway. At least he can get iced coffee here. His face brightened when he saw me and I walked over and sat opposite him.

"Hi hyung," he smiled and I grinned back. "What?" he laughed and I rested my head on my hands.

"Just admiring the view," I flirted and he burst out laughing.

"I look gross and you know it," he croaked and I stood up.

"Still my type. What do you want?" I asked and he rolled his eyes cutely.

"I'll have whatever you're having," he answered.

"You don't like Americanos," I reminded him and he cringed,

"Gross, no. I'll have a caramel macchiato- "

"Iced," I insisted and he smiled,

"Of course." I walked off to order, internally curious as to how anyone could handle something so sweet. Coffee is designed to be bitter. Caramel does not belong in coffee. Period. At least there's something in the world that can match Jimin in terms of tooth-rotting sweetness.

I ordered for both of us and waited to collect the drinks. I heard Jimin giggle from across the room and flicked my head around to see what made him laugh. He was talking to someone I had never seen before. He was tall and ginger with round glasses. Scowling at him from across the Starbucks, I collected my drinks and walked back to our table.

"Hey, who are you?" I asked the guy. He looked at me from _my seat_ and smiled.

"Oh, hey. I just came to check on Jimin." He pointed to Jimin as if I didn't know who he was. I rolled my eyes and set down Jimin's drink in front of him.

"That doesn't answer my question," I stated flatly. I could feel Jimin looking at me but I ignored him. The guy's smile faltered but ultimately remained.

"I'm Park Jaehyung," he replied. I didn't know this person and I wanted him away from my boyfriend.

"How do you know Jimin?" I asked him and he looked uncomfortable under the scrutiny.

"I-I don't," he confessed and I laughed cynically.

"Tryna flirt with my boyfriend then? Get the fuck out, he's taken." I ramped it up a couple of notches, tired of this situation. He raised his hands.

"No, I know. You're Min Yoongi, right? I'm Seokjin and Namjoon's roommate. They had class and told me to get him coffee for when they get back. I recognised Jimin from photos and I knew he was sick so I thought I'd check on him for them," he excused himself quickly and I relaxed immediately.

"Oh, hey. Why didn't you say something earlier?" I smiled and Jimin huffed before hitting me lightly.

"I'm sorry, his overprotective boyfriend switch is broken," Jimin said and Jaehyung laughed.

"It's okay. Just as long as I don't get punched again, you're not the worst overprotective boyfriend I've run into." I smirked at this. He was sitting down, but he looked about 8 feet tall; I had no idea who would dare to punch him, but kudos to them for trying. He stood up and confirmed my thoughts. "Anyway, I should get their drinks. They said they were gonna call you, by the way. Said a lot happened last night," he shrugged and began to walk off.

"Wait, what happened? Do you know?" Jimin asked, ever on the search for drama. Jaehyung smiled,

"I feel like you should hear it from them," he tried but Jimin was persistent.

"Come on," he pouted. "I'm bored," was his excuse and I laughed.

"Well… I don't know the details because I wasn't exactly a part of this conversation," he admitted. "But there was a break-up, apparently- "

"That's got to be Hoseok," I realised instantly. Jimin frowned,

"No, that's so sad! We've got to call him." I nodded and then looked back to Jaehyung.

"And someone else got really drunk. They actually said "baby," so I'm guessing it was not quite legal, too. That's all I know, don't me, don't come for me, don't shoot the messenger, have a nice day," he grinned and walked off, leaving me and Jimin to speculate.

"So, that's either Taehyung or Jungkook. Who's the most likely to get drunk out of those two?" I asked and Jimin giggled,

"Neither of them. Tae despises alcohol and there isn't a store in Korea that would serve a kid like Jungkook."

"I guess we'll see when they call," I shrugged and sipped my drink. In hindsight, it was dumb to order a cold drink when I don't have heatstroke and I was literally just complaining about it being cold on the way here. I shivered and Jimin noticed.

"Are you cold?" he asked and I nodded. He slid his chair to my side of the table and put his hand on my thigh. "I can fix that." He rubbed his hand up and down my leg but it didn't feel like he was trying to warm me up. It was slow and felt oh so flirty. And I was 100% here for it.

"Chim, what are you doing?" I tried to bite back a smile. He looked up at me innocently.

"I'm warming you up. Is it not working?" he pouted. "Maybe this'll help." In a second, he was straddling my lap. Arms around my neck. In Starbucks. I looked up at him, impressed.

"Wow, what's gotten into you?" I asked, fully aware of the several pairs of eyes that had flicked in our direction. Two guys very nearly making out in a public place wasn't really a usual sight. He moved his lips to my ear and whispered,

"I have left my room three times in the last two weeks. I'm bored. Let me have fun, hyung." His mouth grazed my cheek and I was blushing so hard.

"Later, Jimin. Not here." I kissed him lightly and pushed him gently. He reluctantly flipped back into his seat.

"You're boring. I'm gonna go out with Jaehyung," he whined.

"Again, not in the market for getting punched," Jaehyung piped up as he walked past us on the way out. I laughed. Jimin blushed. We said bye to him and carried on talking. I had never been one for touchy-feely, PDA-heavy relationships but then again, I had never really been one for relationships. I guess Jimin could help me be a little less boring.


	49. Chapter 49 - SJ

**Yall aren't ready for what happens next. Just saying sorry in advance. Love ya xx**

_**49 – SJ focus**_

Seokjin was pacing. Namjoon was not. That was the wrong way around to what it usually was but Seokjin was too anxious to care.

"Hyung, you need to calm down," Namjoon said for about the eighth time that morning. He was just sitting down and Seokjin had absolutely no idea how he could be so blasé about the whole situation. In Seokjin's opinion, every member of their friendship group should be pacing their asses off.

"Taehyung hasn't called since last night. What if something happened?" he asked, very flustered. Namjoon just smiled. He probably thought this was cute.

"It's more likely that he would call if something was wrong," he reasoned. "If Jungkook got run over, he'd call us right away." Seokjin sat down.

"I just want to know if they're safe. I didn't like seeing my little baby so drunk. He shouldn't be like that," he sighed. Namjoon took his hand.

"Everything's going to be fine. A lot happened last night, what with that and the breakup. We'll call them when we get back, okay? Now we've gotta go to class in like 5 minutes. Hyung!" he called as Jaehyung appeared from his room. "Can you get us Starbucks? We've got class," he asked, getting up and sorting through a bunch of paper. Jaehyung stood still, trying to think of an excuse.

"I've got class as well?" he pointed out and Seokjin scoffed,

"Were you going to go to it?" he asked and Jaehyung was silent.

"What do you drink?" he asked and Seokjin smiled. They ordered and Jaehyung huffed,

"Wait, can't Jackson do this?" he tried to get out one more time. Namjoon thought,

"You know, he didn't actually come home last night." As all three of them pondered this, Seokjin's alarm went off, beeping at them to get themselves to class. Seokjin quickly kissed Namjoon goodbye and dashed across the university to his lecture hall.

Practical theatre was fun. Sometimes. Because sometimes, they actually did things: devised plays, performed monologues, staged arguments and fight scenes and physical routines. Other times, Seokjin was stuck in a lecture hall learning about those things instead of actually doing them. He had thought that practical theatre would be more, well… practical.

At least the teacher was a nutcase; spiced things up a little bit. He was the type of crazy where no one even bothered to question him. He was probably in his mid-80s and he was the most flamboyant, dynamic, insane person that Seokjin had ever seen. He spoke loudly and emphatically but about the most boring things. If Seokjin liked the subject, he might have liked the lessons. But, sadly, that can't always be the case.

After about an hour and a half of watching someone move around a stage and talking about moving around a stage, the bell rang and Seokjin sprinted. Namjoon's class finished fifteen minutes before his and Seokjin really, really wanted to talk to Taehyung as soon as possible. Knowing that he, and his boyfriend, were still in school, he was desperate to call Yoongi.

He got back in three minutes flat and sat down, trying to let himself breathe.

"You good, hyung?" Namjoon asked from the couch, not even looking up. Seokjin smiled and sat next to him, catching his breath for a second. A minute later, the door opened and Jaehyung walked in with their drinks.

"Hey. I ran into your friends at Starbucks. Jimin says he's okay and Yoongi wants to know what the hell went on last night. And they made out in the middle of Starbucks. I'm gonna go to sleep," he relayed all this in one breath, handed them the drinks and disappeared back into his room. Namjoon shrugged and sipped his drink while Seokjin processed that. He was really gonna kill Yoongi next time they met.

"Can we call Yoongi now?" he asked and Namjoon shut his book and took out his phone. He dialled the number and waited.

_"Hey, hyung!"_ Jimin's slightly raspy voice answered. _"Yoongi-hyung's in the bathroom, he'll be back in a minute."_

"That's okay. How are you?" Seokjin asked.

_"Better than I have been, given that I'm not unconscious. What about you guys?"_ he giggled. Seokjin had missed him.

"We're okay," Namjoon answered. "A lot went on last night and we need to tell you some things."

_"I know. Your roommate stopped by and told us a couple of things. Hyung nearly punched him because he thought he was flirting but he didn't in the end,"_ Jimin recounted. Seokjin smiled. Yoongi was so dead.

"Well, that's good. Now, what's this I hear about making out in the middle of Starbucks?" he prompted and Jimin stuttered,

_"W-we didn't make out… we barely even kissed."_

"Fine, but be careful."

_"Yes, hyung. Oh! Hold on."_ The acoustic changed as Jimin presumably put them on speaker.

_"Hey,"_ Yoongi started but Namjoon interrupted,

"Don't you dare even try to punch Jaehyung. He's like 7 foot 6, so he will win," he warned.

_"He should stay away from my boyfriend then,"_ Yoongi hummed. Jimin laughed. _"Now, come on. what the hell happened last night? From what we can tell, Hoseok broke up with Lee Seohyun and either one of Taekook got drunk."_ Seokjin blinked.

"Yeah. Spot on. I'd recommend calling Hoseok for the detail because, my God, it sounded messy. As for Jungkook…" Seokjin dissolved into worry again so Namjoon took over for him. Best boyfriend.

"We don't know the exact details of that one. We went to Rapture to get Hoseok drunk because break-ups- "

_"Nothing good ever happens in Rapture,"_ Yoongi interrupted bluntly. Seokjin was inclined to agree.

"We didn't even get in before Jungkook came barrelling out of the place drunk off his head," Namjoon continued.

_"Oh my God…"_ Jimin mumbled.

"We called Taehyung to take him home and we haven't heard anything from them since. We were actually wondering if Jimin could go and check up on them? Just to see if they're actually in school or not," Namjoon asked.

_"I wouldn't have to actually go into school though, right?"_ Jimin asked, apprehensive.

"Of course not," Seokjin assured him. "Just go and check if they're in school and then go home and get some rest, goddammit. You've missed loads of school and you need to get better as quickly as possible," Seokjin told him and Jimin giggled.

_"Okay, hyung. Their lunch break starts soon so I should probably go now,"_ he said.

_"I'll walk you,"_ Yoongi offered. Seokjin scoffed,

"Yoongi, get to class, you maniac."

"Would you rather me leave poorly little Jiminie all by himself?" Seokjin paused.

"Get him there safely, take him back home and then get to class," he clarified. Yoongi laughed.

_"That's what I thought. We'll talk soon, okay? Bye!"_

_"Bye!"_

"See you!"

"Stay safe!" Seokjin hung up and sighed. Pleased that that was mostly resolved, he sat back and turned to Namjoon. "Evening plans?" he asked, knowing full well that the answer was homework. Maybe they could squeeze in a tiny date, over dinner perhaps? Seokjin scolded himself for getting overexcited and decided to listen to the answer.

"English," Namjoon sighed with a frown. "We have to learn and recall the subjunctive and it's absolutely impossible. It makes almost no sense." Seokjin tilted his head, wondering how he could help.

"Almost no sense is better than no sense at all. You could try teaching it to me?" he offered. "They say that if you teach something, then you really understand it." Namjoon seemed to realise that Seokjin's ulterior motive was to spend time with him, but smiled and nodded anyway.

"Sounds good. I need to actually learn it first, though. And finish my drink," he replied, sipping at his remaining coffee. Seokjin frowned at his empty cup.

"I need to go pick up a few supplies anyway. You can be my teacher when I get back," he grinned, kissing Namjoon on the cheek. He checked he had his wallet and heard a cheery,

"See ya, hyung!" from Namjoon before disappearing out the door.

It was cold outside and Seokjin dug his hands into his pockets to stop the air biting at his skin as he walked quickly to the store. As he walked along the street, he heard a familiar giggle that instinctively made him smile. Sure, he had last heard it a few minutes ago, but he looked around everywhere to see where it was coming from. He had forgotten their route would take them past this way

He spotted a flash of a red coat from across the road and immediately jogged over to surprise them. Again, they had just talked, but they still hadn't seen each other in so long. They looked happy.

Seokjin was hit by a solid wall of pain and blacked out before he knew what was happening.


	50. Chapter 50 - JM

**this is so dramatic ik I was rlly going through it :/**

**_50 – JM focus_**

The effect of Yoongi on Jimin never ceased to amaze. The moment Jimin saw him again, he felt a thousand times better. That was still incredibly bad, but he would do anything to spend more time with his darling boyfriend. He was really happy these days.

He was a little taken aback to hear the news about Jungkook and Hoseok. It didn't sound like anyone else was having a brilliant time and it broke his heart a little bit. He really hoped they were okay. At least they were going to see Jungkook and Taehyung again. He hadn't seen them in weeks. That was depressing. They were planning to call Hoseok on the way, too, just to check on him. Seokjin had said 'messy' and Jimin believed him. Anything involving Lee Seohyun didn't tend to be particularly neat.

As soon as they left the Starbucks, Yoongi called. Jimin had a bad feeling about how this breakup could have gone down. Because of her, well, _personal_ relationship with Yoongi, he had been suspicious about this from the moment they heard she was dating Hoseok.

_"Hello?"_ Hoseok answered and Jimin's heart jumped in excitement. He hadn't seen Hoseok since he had graduated.

"Hey, hyung!" he greeted excitedly and Yoongi laughed at him. Jimin didn't care.

_"Oh, hey Jimin-ah! I heard you were sick, are you okay?"_ he asked gently and Jimin smiled,

"Yeah, I'm much better now, thanks!"

"I'm good, too, by the way," Yoongi coughed saltily. Jimin could practically hear Hoseok's eye roll through the phone.

_"Last thing I heard, hyung, you didn't have heatstroke. I'm sorry that you don't warrant the majority of my concern,"_ Hoseok joked.

"Yeah, well, last thing I heard, you were dating Lee Seohyun," Yoongi replied caringly. "That warrants the majority of _my_ concern." Hoseok stuttered.

_"God, you heard about that. We broke up before she could trick me anymore, though. I still don't understand why I went out with her," _he scolded himself and Jimin pouted,

"Hyung, don't be like that. It wasn't your fault she seduced you. She's just a bitch is all. You're better off forgetting about her." Hoseok hummed in response.

"How did it end, if you don't mind me asking?" Yoongi inquired, earning a scoff from Hoseok.

_"The classic. She called me by the wrong name: yours,"_ he said and Yoongi hissed in sympathy.

"Ouch, I'm sorry, hyung. Not a great way to end things," Jimin sighed and Hoseok tutted in agreement.

_"Ah, well. This is what happens when you leave love to chance. You guys are lucky you had me to sort you out,"_ Hoseok chuckled. Jimin giggled and grasped Yoongi's hand, lightly kissing him on the cheek and feeling grateful for Hoseok's little plan.

A screech. A crash. A thud.

Jimin's head whipped round to see a car speeding off down the road. His eyes followed it, confused by its damaged front and dangerous speed.

"Jesus fucking Christ, Hoseok, I'll call you back," Yoongi promised hastily before hanging up. Jimin looked at Yoongi, who held his head in place to lock eyes with him. His usually clear and deep brown eyes were now swirling with panic. "Jimin, listen to me. Whatever happens, you stay here. You keep looking at the floor and you do not follow me." He didn't even check to make sure Jimin understood before running off.

Jimin wanted to follow him. He wanted to look and see what had happened. But Yoongi had told him to do something and this sounded serious. That only made Jimin want to look more. Despite this, he stayed. He focused on the floor, trying not to hear his boyfriend's frantic tones. He just looked at the concrete, at the tarmac on the ground, at the rusty iron drain in the road, at the deep red blood flowing into it-

No. What?

Blood. So much blood.

Jimin was suddenly unable to breathe. He was frozen. Slowly and against his will, his eyes followed the river of blood to its source. _No, Yoongi-hyung told you not to look. Stop it. Don't, please, don't… Hyung?_

He couldn't blink at the scene in the middle of the road. Yoongi was speedily relaying information through his phone. He was holding someone's hand. Someone unconscious and bleeding heavily. Someone who could be considered handsome if not for the dirt and blood streaking his face. Someone who looked exactly like Seokjin.

_That's crazy,_ Jimin's brain told him. _It can't be Seokjin-hyung. He doesn't have _that_ much blood inside him_. Jimin couldn't deal with this. He understood why Yoongi told him not to look. He dropped to the floor, tears beginning to flow from his face. They had just been talking a few minutes ago. This couldn't be possible.

More people had begun to converge on the quiet road, mostly marvelling at Seokjin. Some were talking to Yoongi, who was barely off his phone. He was crying, too, Jimin noticed. Someone approached Jimin.

"Hello, my name is Changkyun," said the person. Jimin didn't want to be rude, but he also couldn't care less. "I'm really sorry, but your boyfriend told me to take you away from here. Is that okay?" they asked. Jimin wanted to stay with Yoongi. He wanted to hug him and be told it was all okay. But... there was so much blood…

He nodded, a hand still clapped over his mouth to stop himself sobbing. The person kindly helped him stand up and held his arm as they walked away from the horror show. Jimin willed himself not to pass out. He didn't want anyone to worry over him, at least not now.

Suddenly, Jimin remembered Taehyung and Jungkook. They had to know. He couldn't just call them; they'd get in trouble for having their phones and school didn't end for hours-

"Is there anyone you want to call? Your boyfriend said he had already called Namjoon," the person told him with a calm and gentle voice. Jimin truly appreciated that.

"Th-the school." His voice shook weakly and he hated himself for crying so much that he couldn't even tell this person who to call. Hoseok had to be told as well. This couldn't be happening. It just couldn't. Jimin's mind was stuck on the image of Seokjin lying in the road, on the car racing away after it hit him. He was thankful for the stranger's arm on his. He couldn't do this alone.


	51. Chapter 51 - V

**Okay I definitely didn't mean to leave it this long so I'll give you more stuff I promise ~**

_**51 - V focus**_

Taehyung tapped his pen anxiously against his desk. It was only a few minutes until the end of the lesson. Then, he only had two more lessons to go and then he could go home. Well, he was actually planning on hanging around with Jungkook for a while. Just the thought of that made him smile.

"Kim Taehyung! Are you concentrating?" the teacher snapped at him and Taehyung immediately sat up straight. He stared at the board and realised that he had no idea what was going on. However, he smiled and replied,

"Yes, sir. Sorry, sir." The teacher looked at him sceptically. Taehyung knew what was coming next and he was going to need all of his brain cells to get through this without a thorough scolding.

"Well then, solve the equation," the teacher folded his arms and Taehyung skimmed frantically through his notes and the writing on the board trying to figure out how to do this.

Thankfully, he was interrupted by a knock at the door. The vice-principal entered the room and everyone immediately assumed a rigid, studious posture. In the corridor, Taehyung could see Jungkook pacing. He was unable to catch his eye. Had the school found out about him drinking? No, why would they call Taehyung for that?

"Sorry for interrupting, Mr Choi, but I need to take Kim Taehyung," the vice-principal stated and Taehyung's heart did a somersault of relief. Mr Choi grinned,

"Ms Kim, he was just about to answer a question- "

"I'm sorry, this is urgent," Ms Kim said gravely and Taehyung's heart sank. Whatever this was, it was not good. he watched Jungkook pacing outside and stood up, everyone's eyes on him. He walked out of the room with the vice-principal and heard the door shut behind him. Jungkook grasped his hand. "Now, boys, a situation has arisen that we must inform you about." This really was not filling Taehyung with hope.

"Are we in trouble?" Taehyung asked carefully and Ms Kim didn't even smile as she shook her head.

"No. This situation concerns someone we have been informed is very close to you two." Okay, what in fresh hell was going on? "A few minutes ago, a boy named Kim Seokjin was hit by a car." Jungkook gasped. Taehyung's mouth dropped open. "Im Changkyun called to inform us that Park Jimin was at the scene and was deeply affected by the event. Due to your close relations to these people, it seemed like the right thing to do to tell you and allow you authorised leave to help your friends."

No. What?

This wasn't happening. They had to be okay. Taehyung had no idea who Im Changkyun was but he was definitely getting the biggest hug if they ever met.

"Your parents have also been informed and have allowed you to leave school. Another of your friends is waiting outside for you. I suggest you go now." Taehyung looked at Jungkook, bowed to Ms Kim and ran to the front doors, hand in hand with his boyfriend. They sprinted all the way down the drive and stopped to catch their breath as they looked for whoever was waiting for them.

A cab was parked on the side of the road near the gates. The door opened and Hoseok stepped out. He regarded them quickly and then ordered,

"In." Neither hesitated. They immediately got into the cab and were off.

"H-how long ago?" Taehyung asked. Hoseok checked his watch as if he had forgotten time existed.

"About half an hour. Everyone else is already at the hospital. He's still in intensive care but they said he should be okay," he relayed. That sounded like a lie. Taehyung wanted to believe it anyway. He just squeezed Jungkook's hand tighter and tried to breathe.

The second they arrived at the hospital, all three of them jumped out of the car and ran inside, Hoseok only just remembering to pay the driver. Somehow, Taehyung made a mental note to learn to drive as soon as he turned 18.

Dashing into the hospital, they were confronted with a crying Namjoon, a teary Yoongi and a weeping Jimin. Yoongi spotted them first. He tapped the other two and pointed them out. Jimin instantly ran and gave Taehyung the biggest hug he had ever received. He was just upset that it wasn't a happy hug. It wasn't tears of joy. Their lives were on the verge of ruin. He could hear Yoongi sobbing,

"I tried, I tried to stop him looking, I tried to call everyone as soon as possible, I tried to remember everything I could, I tried…" His ramblings were only cut off by Hoseok consoling,

"I know, hyung. You tried your best and you did so, so well." Hoseok was being the hyung. Understandable. Yoongi played the cool game but he was as weak as the rest of them inside. Taehyung just gripped Jimin's shirt tighter and let him cry as much as he needed to.

"Tae, I can't… there was so much blood…" Jimin whimpered into his ear. Jimin couldn't stand blood. He almost threw up when they had to dissect a sheep's heart in biology. This would have been traumatic for him even if it wasn't Seokjin. But it was.

"It's gonna be okay, I swear," Taehyung lied. He couldn't promise that. He just wanted Jimin to stop crying. It… worked? He was still shaking, but sobs were no longer ripping through his body like before. "Jimin?" Taehyung whispered. No answer. "Jimin!" He let go, more panicked. Jimin fell. Almost.

Taehyung stepped back and let Yoongi carry the unconscious Jimin away. He went to ask a nurse for help and it wasn't long before they were whisked away as well.

The world was falling apart. Things kept going wrong. People kept leaving. Nothing was there. Taehyung couldn't hear anything anymore. Blinded by tears.

Arms wrapped around his waist and warmth spread through his body.

"Hyung…" Jungkook's voice sang through his ears and let him hear the world again. Everything became less blurred and a little sharper. "They're both going to be just fine. You know that. They're strong," Jungkook whispered. Taehyung nodded, even though he wasn't entirely sure they would be. Mentally, they were the strongest people he knew. Even physically they could both beat him any day. But against a car? Or heatstroke? He wasn't sure.

Jungkook wiped his eyes for him and helped him sit down. Now even Jungkook was being a hyung. He was going through the exact same thing as Taehyung and still had the strength to take care of him. That was so impressive it made Taehyung want to cry more. Focusing on his breathing, Taehyung calmed himself down. It was all going to be okay. Maybe. He looked up at Jungkook's face for reassurance and found comfort in his cool brown eyes.

"Excuse me," a nurse approached them. "Are any of you relatives of Kim Seokjin?" he asked and the four looked anxiously amongst themselves. They all knew that if they told the truth, they wouldn't be let in until much later. Already despairing, Taehyung thought of an easy solution. He pointed at Namjoon.

"He is. Kim Namjoon," he stated in a hopefully believable way. Namjoon looked at him with a grain of confusion immediately outweighed by a ton of courage.

"Yeah, I'm his brother. Is he okay?" he asked, voice trembling and full of concern. The nurse smiled kindly.

"Come with me, Mr Kim. Your friends can just stay here for the time being," he glanced over the rest of them before leading Namjoon to where Seokjin was.

Hoseok and Jungkook each rested their heads on one of Taehyung's shoulders. Taehyung took it one second at a time, reassured in the knowledge that no matter what, his friends were there for him.


	52. Chapter 52 - RM

_**52 - RM focus**_

Namjoon didn't think his heart had ever beaten this quickly in his entire life. No English assignment, no music project, no social issue had ever put him under this much stress before and he wasn't entirely sure he could handle it. But he had to. He wanted to.

When Yoongi had called, he didn't understand. Seokjin had left for barely five minutes. Namjoon hadn't even finished his drink yet. And he got a call from one of his best friends speaking far too quickly for him to understand.

"Hyung, hyung, slow down. What's wrong?" he had asked, fairly certain that nothing could be that wrong. He had only spoken to them a few minutes ago, after all. The answer seemed impossible.

"It's Seokjin-hyung. He just got hit by a car."

There was a moment of hesitation. Once that was over, Namjoon bolted out the door, across campus and down the roads to where Yoongi had said they were. He was faced with an ambulance, flashing lights, people talking through phones and radios. Yoongi hadn't said much.

"Go with him. I need to find Jimin."

It was the longest ambulance ride of Namjoon's life. Granted, it was the only ambulance ride of Namjoon's life but that didn't negate the fact that it felt like hours. He just stared at Seokjin. He barely looked like Seokjin. A breathing tube, bandages, bruises, all the things that Namjoon didn't ever want to see attached to his boyfriend again.

At the hospital, they took Seokjin away. No one told him to where and Namjoon was left helplessly in the waiting room to do nothing but cry. He knew Seokjin was strong, he knew that he would most likely get through this alive and happy. But Namjoon's brain wasn't cooperating anymore. It kept throwing things at him. What if his organs were punctured? What if he lost too much blood? What if the surgery goes wrong?

Namjoon wanted to scream at his brain to stop it, to shut up, to let him live with hope instead of the constant fear of despair.

"Hey, Joon, it's okay, we're here," a smooth voice comforted him.

"H-hyung," he managed to whisper and Yoongi stroked his arm slowly. Namjoon forced himself to stop crying so he could talk to his friends. He stood up and was immediately wrapped in a hug. Jimin was so fucking good at hugs, even though Namjoon was quite a bit taller than him. they always made him feel so safe and satisfied. He really needed to feel that right about now.

They all sat down and Yoongi explained what happened. His tone, Namjoon noticed, was slightly apologetic, as if it was his fault. Namjoon knew it wasn't and told him instantly. Yoongi looked away.

"I could have done better," he mumbled sadly. Jimin held his hand and Namjoon tried to smile.

"And you could have done so much worse. Be thankful that you didn't. He's in safe hands now because of you so do not beat yourself up over this. Please. Because it isn't your fault." He tried so hard to make Yoongi believe him. He thought that Yoongi did. They sat in silence for a while after that.

Eventually, they heard the sound of running footsteps through the door. Namjoon didn't look up; it was a hospital. Everyone was running in and out. Yoongi tapped him on the shoulder and Namjoon turned around to see Hoseok, Taehyung and Jungkook in the same state of distress. Jimin sprinted to hug Taehyung. Yoongi walked over to talk to Hoseok. And, even now, Namjoon felt the need to protect Jungkook. So he went and hugged him as tight as he could, wishing that nothing would ever hurt him.

"Hyung, is he okay?" Jungkook asked, sounding so small that Namjoon hugged him even tighter.

"I don't know," he answered. He didn't want to lie. Jungkook seemed to understand.

"Jimin!" He heard Taehyung call in panic and Namjoon looked up to see Yoongi carrying a limp Jimin away from them. Poor boy. It must have all gotten too much for him. He still wasn't entirely better, either. Jungkook let go of him and walked over to the sobbing Taehyung. Namjoon just held Hoseok's hand and prayed for the first time in his life. If there was a God, he needed Them to listen right now. He just wanted everyone to be okay.

A nurse came up to them and regarded their mess of a group with a detached, non-judgemental kindness.

"Excuse me, are any of you relatives of Kim Seokjin?" he asked and Namjoon bit his lip. None of them were. They wouldn't get to see him.

"He is. Kim Namjoon." Namjoon looked to Taehyung and realised what he had thought of. Thank whatever God there was that his boyfriend had the same name as him.

"Yeah, I'm his brother." Not entirely a lie. Also thank God that the Korean language was so ambiguous. Namjoon might just have to become religious once all of this was over.

"Come with me Mr Kim. Your friends can stay here for now." Namjoon nodded and reluctantly left the others behind. It was okay. He was going to see Seokjin.

The nurse led him along corridors and up stairs and through doors for what seemed like miles before they finally entered a ward with around six beds in it, mostly empty.

"His condition is stable. There is quite a bit of internal bleeding plus some gashes that will most likely scar. Other than that, there isn't any brain damage or organ failure so he won't require surgery. A couple of broken bones that will just need time to heal. He got very lucky. He must be very strong." Namjoon wanted to cry with relief. There was a lot still wrong with him but he wasn't going to die. "Are your parents coming?" the nurse asked and Namjoon was confused before he remembered that he was supposed to be Seokjin's brother. Time to make up a story.

"I'm not sure. Min Yoongi may have called them but I don't have my phone on me at the moment so I can't," he lied, very conscious of his phone in his back pocket. The nurse just nodded.

"We'll call them for you. Kim Namjoon, was it?" he asked and Namjoon very nearly panicked.

"It's… complicated. Use Kim Seokjin's records instead." The nurse looked at him curiously but smiled and walked off anyway. Namjoon sighed and turned back to his boyfriend lying on the bed. He looked so peaceful. Like he was sleeping. Namjoon wanted him to be awake. He wanted to talk to him and laugh with him. He wanted to teach him the subjunctive tense like he had promised to do.

He took a chair and sat down, watching Seokjin so intently that one might believe he was telepathic. The soft beeping of the machines was rhythmic and constant and Namjoon soon lost track of the amount of time he had spent at Seokjin's bedside. He couldn't leave. He didn't dare.

Eventually, another person entered the room. Namjoon had no idea how long he had been alone for but he hadn't realised how much he wanted someone to talk to. The tone of the sigh beside him let him know that it was Yoongi without him even looking up.

"How's Jimin?" he asked, not taking his eyes off Seokjin.

"Awake. They put him in an ice bath for a while and they're gonna put him on medication to control his body temperature. He's okay." Namjoon nodded. He didn't want two of his friends hospitalised at the same time.

"How's he handling all this?" he asked and Yoongi paused.

"Not well," he admitted. "He hates blood and all that was just… a lot. He'll come to terms with it eventually, though." Namjoon wasn't too sure if Yoongi was trying to convince him or himself. He hoped both. "What about you?"

"They said he got lucky. Only a few broken bones, no drastic internal damage or anything like that. He just needs time to heal," Namjoon sighed. It had been a very long day. The whole accident had taken place just less than three hours ago now. It seemed like forever ago. Namjoon wanted it to have been forever ago. He wanted to move past all of this and for everything to be okay again. Just like it had been three hours ago.


	53. Chapter 53 - JH

**_52 – JH focus_**

Hoseok was staying calm. And he hated it. From the moment Yoongi called him in tears, he had been forced to stay calm. He had had to order a cab to go and pick up Taehyung and Jungkook, not making them worry. He'd had to console Yoongi at the hospital, console Taehyung at the hospital, console everyone but himself. He wanted so badly to just cry, to scream about how unfair this was. But he couldn't.

It had been maybe two hours or so since they arrived and they had been given various updates: Jimin was awake, Seokjin was unconscious, Jimin was on medication, Seokjin was stable. It gave Hoseok some hope that it would all be okay. He was just tired of worrying so much.

His phone buzzed in his pocket and he barely remembered to look at the caller ID before answering it.

"Hello?" he asked, aware of how unenthusiastic he sounded.

_"Oppa…"_ the voice whined through the phone. Hoseok was considering throwing it away then and there. He did not want to talk to her right now. Or ever, for that matter.

"What do you want, Seohyun?" he asked coldly, drawing the attention of Taehyung and Jungkook as well. Hoseok didn't know if they knew what had gone down but he silently promised to explain it when she was gone.

_"I want you. I miss you,"_ she pouted and Hoseok rolled his eyes so hard it hurt.

"No you fucking don't," he told her. "You never wanted me in the first place."

_"Oppa, that's not true! I do love you, I swear! Where are you right now? I want to see you."_ Hoseok laughed bitterly.

"I'm at the hospital. Hyung got run over," he chose his words carefully, intending to trap her. It worked.

_"Oh my God! Was it Yoongi-oppa?"_ she asked, very concerned.

"No. It wasn't. But the fact that your mind goes to him is the exact reason I don't want to be with you anymore. You're selfish. You want him all to yourself just so you can brag about winning him. Hell, even if you did get him, you'd ditch him the next week. You don't care who you fuck up as long as you get your way and it's insufferable. Grow the fuck up." Tension was boiling inside Hoseok from the past two hours of life and he needed someone to spit it out at. So why shouldn't it be her?

_"Oppa, please, calm down- "_

"No, fuck you. I don't want to deal with you. Two of my friends are hospitalised and the rest of them are crying their souls out. I have far more important things to deal with than someone like you. You tricked me, you used me, you broke my heart. And for what? To get with a gay guy who has a boyfriend? What kind of fucked up person does something like that?"

_"You're overreacting,"_ she dared to reply. Hoseok scoffed and stood up.

"I'm overreacting? One of my friends nearly died today. One of them is traumatised, one of them thinks it's his fault, one of them nearly lost his boyfriend, one of them doesn't have their best friend to help them cope and one of them has had to grow up faster than he ever should've had to. And on top of that, you have the fucking nerve to tell me to calm down? You distracted me! Without you, I could have met with the others. I could have helped. Even right now, I could be holding their hands and telling them it's okay but I'm not! Apparently, I have to yell at you because you still think you're in the right!"

Hoseok was shaking. Crying. Fuming. A hand wrapped around his waist and another took the phone from his hand.

"Savour this, it's the last time you're ever hearing my voice," Yoongi told her. "Fuck off and never bother me again. Don't speak to my friends and get over yourself. You're a grown woman, live your life chasing someone who likes you, if that person exists. I'm leaving. Good luck getting into SM, sweetheart." With that, he hung up and hugged Hoseok tightly. Dear God, Hoseok needed that.

"Thank you, hyung," he whispered, half hoping that Yoongi wouldn't hear him.

"It's okay. You did the same for me," he replied. This was such an emotional day and Hoseok needed to pause it just for three seconds.

After four seconds, they went back to sit down with Taehyung and Jungkook.

"Hyung, you didn't have to defend us like that," Jungkook said quietly. Hoseok took a deep breath, still minorly shaken from his rant. He smiled.

"I wanted to. She doesn't deserve any kind of explanation, but she needs to get it inside her head that she doesn't matter to me anymore. You guys are all that matters to me." Jungkook grinned and Taehyung overdramatically put his hand over his heart as if he had been shot. Yoongi looked at them curiously and then managed to smile.

"Jungkookie, are you okay?" he asked and Jungkook nodded, ruffling his hair. "How's your hangover?" Jungkook blushed deep red and Hoseok failed to bite back a smile. Even Taehyung let out a small giggle.

"He's never drinking again. He was such a mess this morning, I had to drag him into school," he smiled affectionately and Jungkook buried his face in Taehyung's shoulder.

"Aw, Kookie, don't be shy! We wanna know about your drunken antics other than singing the Friends theme as loud as you possibly can," Hoseok grinned and Jungkook whined.

"_Please_ forget that," he begged and Hoseok laughed. It felt good to laugh after all of this. The past three hours had been so painful, so heart-breaking. But Hoseok was laughing with his friends and making fun of Jungkook and it felt normal again. If only it could stay that way forever.

"Hey, guys," a sleepy Jimin greeted them when he came back in the room. Taehyung immediately got up to hug him, more gently than before. "I'm sorry for passing out on you, Tae," he chuckled and Taehyung let him go.

"Nah, it wasn't your fault. Feeling better?" he asked as they sat down again. Jimin shrugged,

"Yeah, I guess. They got me a prescription this time so I don't have to try and control my body temperature with Starbucks like before. That means I can go back to school on Monday," he said with false enthusiasm. Taehyung laughed,

"Well, at least you've got all weekend to catch up. You're going to need to work your ass off this week if you want to pass the midterms, though," he warned and Jimin cringed.

"Excuse me." The nurse was back and all five of us stood up at once. "Are you all here for Kim Seokjin?" We all nodded. "This way, then."


	54. Chapter 54 - SJ

**end of angst!**

_**54 - SJ focus**_

The first thing Seokjin was aware of when he opened his eyes was the sheer amount of white he could see around him. It was almost too bright and he wanted to go to sleep again. He was only prevented from doing that by the sudden realisation that he couldn't move rather a lot of his body. He could move his head, his fingers, his toes. Only his right shoulder was cooperating and both of his legs were stuck in place.

_Oh._

It was a hospital. He was in a hospital bed. Why? What happened to him? He tried to think back to the last thing he remembered. He talked with Namjoon, had Starbucks and then left the dorm to go to the store. He had seen Yoongi and Jimin. And then… nothing, really. There had to be more than that, surely. Think. But he couldn't. All he could remember was running across the road to meet them and-

_Second oh._

He got hit by a car, didn't he? Why couldn't he be more careful? He had just run into the road. That was dumb. And now he was in hospital. How long had he been here? When had that all happened? Hours ago? Days? Maybe even weeks. He would ask someone, but there didn't seem to be anyone around.

A door slid open at the side of the room and Seokjin looked over. Jungkook. He was sipping a drink through a straw and didn't look entirely satisfied with it. He sat down and looked at Seokjin. They locked eyes. Jungkook very nearly dropped his drink.

"H-hyung? You're awake?" he breathed incredulously. Seokjin smiled and rolled his eyes.

"No, I sleep with my eyes open, idiot," he retorted, voice cracking from lack of use, but Jungkook didn't laugh. He just put his drink on the floor and gave Seokjin the most awkward, desperate hug he had ever received. If Seokjin could move both of his arms, he would have hugged him back just as hard. Jungkook pulled back and Seokjin was slightly taken aback to see tears in Jungkook's eyes.

"I can't believe you're awake," he grinned. Seokjin laughed.

"Couldn't leave you all alone, now could I? Who would look after you?" His voice was getting a little stronger now and he wanted to talk as much as he could. But he also wanted to listen. "What happened?" he asked, quieter, as Jungkook picked up his drink again.

"You got hit by a car. Driver didn't stop but there was CCTV on the street that they're trying to get a hold of. You were lucky that Yoongi-hyung and Jimin-hyung could call everyone." Seokjin felt a little bit guilty at stopping them from laughing and having a good time.

"How are they?" he asked cautiously. He wanted this to be a small event, but he suspected that everyone must have been worrying their faces off. Jungkook sighed,

"Yoongi-hyung was fine. He managed to call an ambulance, Namjoon-hyung, Hobi-hyung and the police in under three minutes. He kept thinking he could have done it quicker but we told him that it wasn't his fault. Jimin-hyung…" Jungkook paused, trying to word his thoughts. "He wasn't very well anyway. He doesn't like blood, either. He was in shock for a while and he passed out at the hospital. He's okay, though. His heatstroke is pretty much gone and he's only a little bit scarred." Seokjin nodded.

"Where is everyone?" he asked, confused at why only Jungkook was there.

"It's a Thursday. Yoongi-hyung and Hoseok-hyung are in class. Taehyungie-hyung is currently on a coffee run because this stuff is gross," he grimaced and put down his cup. "And Namjoon-hyung is taking Jimin-hyung for his final check-up downstairs. They'll be out in a minute, though." Jungkook sighed. "He missed you, you know."

"Who? Namjoonie?" Seokjin smiled at the thought of his boyfriend missing him. "I've been here all this time, though. He didn't need to miss me," he pouted. To him, it felt like he had only spoken to Namjoon about five minutes ago. To Namjoon, it had been about six days. There was a sci-fi plot there, Seokjin thought. The door opened again.

"Jungkookie, remind me never to get heatstroke again," Jimin whined. Jungkook just grinned and stayed quiet. "What?" Jimin asked. He looked down at Seokjin and his jaw dropped. "Hyung!" Seokjin was wrapped in another half-lying down hug and he grinned. "How are you feeling?" he asked, pulling away to sit next to Jungkook. Seokjin did the best shrug he could manage.

"Considering I can't move half my body, I'm doing pretty well. What about you?" he inquired and Jimin scoffed,

"You got hit by a car! Why are you worrying about me?" he giggled and Seokjin tilted his head.

"Heatstroke and trauma? Sounds pretty bad to me," he pointed out, concerned. Jimin just smiled,

"It's nothing, really. My heatstroke is basically gone but I've got a psych assessment later to make sure I'm not mentally damaged or anything." Seokjin saw Jimin's face fall as he remembered the incident. Maybe an assessment wasn't a bad idea. But Jimin's face lit up again. "Wait, I just came with Namjoon-hyung! Where'd he go?"

As soon as the question was asked, the door opened and Taehyung and Namjoon walked in, holding two drinks each.

"Who left Taehyungie to carry four drinks by himself?" Namjoon scolded the others. Seokjin beamed, proud of him for taking on a leadership role while he was unconscious. Namjoon's eyes fell on him and took a second to realise that Seokjin's eyes were open and conscious and alive. "Hyung…"

Jimin and Jungkook swiftly took the drinks that Namjoon was definitely about to drop to the floor as he rushed to Seokjin's bedside. Instead of another half-hug like Seokjin was expecting, Namjoon slid to his knees by the bed and grasped Seokjin's hand.

"Please, please tell me you're okay…" he whispered. The room was silent, everyone watching the scene like an audience and watching it dramatically unfold like a k-drama. Seokjin smiled gently.

"I'm okay, Joon. Don't worry. I dreamed of you," he replied softly and Namjoon looked up with teary eyes. He stood up and kissed Seokjin as if he would break. Seokjin wanted to freeze this moment in time. He barely remembered the last time they had kissed and it meant so much more to him now. He wanted to-

His romantically poetic train of thought was interrupted by someone loudly sipping a drink. Seokjin giggled and Namjoon sighed, looking back to find who interrupted their little moment. It was Jungkook, probably spurred on by Taehyung. This is what happens when you put the three maknaes together and ask them not to disrupt anything; they totally ignore that.

"Aww, that was so cute!" Jimin cooed, "I wish I'd filmed that; we could have played it at your wedding. I guess there are security tapes in here, right?" Namjoon leant back and hit him with one of his ridiculously long arms.

"No, Jimin, you aren't asking the nurses for wedding footage," he protested and turned back to Seokjin, grinning. "This is what I've had to deal with without you. It's been hell." Seokjin smiled,

"The best leader," and kissed him lightly on the nose, making him blush.

"Also," Taehyung started, "I texted Yoongi-hyung and if he isn't here in about eight seconds, I will be shocked and offended on your behalf. I told Hobi-hyung, too, but he's at dance class so I have no idea when he'll next pick up his phone.

Eight seconds passed. Nothing from either of them. A hundred and ninety-three more seconds passed and the doors flung open, Yoongi and Hoseok striding in together.

"Hyung!" Yoongi beamed.

"You got Starbucks?" Hoseok pouted at Jungkook. Jungkook shrugged and offered him a sip.

"Okay, so I know who's my least favourite," Seokjin scoffed and Hoseok looked heartbroken. "I'm kidding, Hobi-ah. I missed you, too." Seokjin blew him a kiss and Hoseok brightened up significantly. Yoongi laughed,

"Glad you're back, hyung. It's been a nightmare trying to be the oldest to this lot. I will admit, Namjoon did most of the work," he admitted.

"I 100% believe that," Seokjin replied and Yoongi rolled his eyes. Jimin looked at his watch and then checked his phone and then eyed the wall clock. "Somewhere to be, Jimin?" Seokjin asked with false offence. Jimin ran his hand through his hair.

"Yeah, kinda. The therapy thing," he reminded them. Jungkook hit him after checking the time,

"Hyung, get out of here or you'll be late!" he implored and Jimin cringed,

"I don't know. I'm kind of… not scared. Apprehensive, I guess?" he tried to explain. Yoongi held his hand.

"Come on, I'll go with you. It won't be that bad, I swear," he consoled and Jimin nodded.

"Okay, let's go. It was nice talking to you again, hyung! I'll come tomorrow, too!" he called to Seokjin as Yoongi pulled him out of the door. Seokjin waved with his good arm and sighed in contentment. It was so nice to be awake again.


	55. Chapter 55 - YG

**sorry it took so long :/ was debating whether to end it but decided not to :)**

_**55 - YG**_

Taking Jimin to therapy isn't something I ever thought I'd do. Ever. I never wanted him to go through anything that made him need therapy. I kept having to remind myself that Seokjin's accident was not my fault.

Jimin checked in at the psychology ward and we sat in those weirdly uncomfortable chairs outside the room. He was being very chatty and it made me smile. It was probably nerves and I understood that. I just looked at our interlocked hands while he rambled about Seokjin and how happy he was and how nervous he was.

"-and my heart nearly exploded, I swear to God, and you're being really quiet, hyung, it's kind of freaking me out, what's wrong?" he asked suddenly and I looked at him, surprised.

"Hm? Oh, it's nothing," I answered. I was telling the truth for the most part but Jimin didn't look like he believed me at all. I didn't blame him. He probably would have pushed further if the door hadn't opened and a man walked out.

"Park Jimin?" he called and Jimin stood up. He tried to pull me with him but I shook my head and stayed put.

"You're a big boy, you can go by yourself," I joked but he pouted. "I'll stay here. I'll see you afterwards, okay?" I promised. He looked sad and it tore my heart but eventually, he walked into the room and the door shut behind them.

I stared at the door and felt a little better. Jimin was in there, speaking his little heart out to people I knew would listen to him. He was being so brave and I was so proud of him and loved him. So goddamn much. Forty-five minutes had never felt longer. The seconds clicked by, the minutes ticked away and finally, the door opened again. Jimin was smiling and it warmed my heart. He skipped over to me and held my hands before kissing me on the cheek. I was certain I was blushing.

"How'd it go?" I asked. Jimin shrugged, not letting go of my hands.

"Fine. They told me to come back if anything happens," he recalled and I tilted my head.

"Anything like what?" I asked.

"Like a panic attack or something. I don't think it will, though," he smiled and I kissed him softly.

"That's my boy," I told him and now we were both blushing. I don't know how we managed to make it awkward between us but I guess neither of us was expecting me to be this wholesome. I just didn't want Jimin to feel stressed after his therapy. I wanted to take his mind off it. "Come back to mine," I offered. "I've got something to show you." Jimin raised his eyebrow.

"Hyung, have you been keeping secrets?" he asked and I laughed.

"I'll show you, come on," and I pulled him away. Out of the ward, out of the hospital, away from it all. We had spent far too long in there over the past week, just looking at Seokjin sleep, totally unaware of anything. It was either that or doctors making sure Jimin wouldn't pass out; neither of those options was ideal and I think we both needed some time away from it all. The others could look after Seokjin for now.

We got back to my dorm about an hour later (after _another_ detour to Starbucks) where I sat down at my desk and opened my laptop. I could tell he was still a little bit uneasy to be in my room after what happened the last time he was here. That argument felt like such a long time ago. I smiled and patted my leg. He looked at me for a second blankly before giving in and sitting on my lap anyway. He was warm.

"What are you looking for?" he asked, gesturing to the hundreds of files I was flicking and clicking between. I just hummed, dodging the question. He was fiddling with my shirt buttons and, to be honest, I was stalling for time just to keep him there. Eventually, I handed him my headphones. He looked at me curiously but accepted them as I pressed play on the file. I could just about hear the beat play. Jimin's face lit up as he realised what it was.

"Hyung, you made this?" he asked and I nodded. He continued listening intently. "Whoa, it's so good! I love it!" he said and I smiled,

"Really?" He nodded and it did seem honest.

"Are you gonna show the others?" he asked. "We haven't done anything like this since school ended. And it would be something cool to do while Seokjin-hyung gets better," he suggested.

"I was gonna show them soon. I just wanted you to be the first." I kissed him on the cheek and he beamed. "There's a lot of random stuff on here that's, like, half-finished. Maybe a quarter. Once I've finished my compositions then I can start working on them again." Jimin hit me in the chest.

"Idiot. Why don't you use _these_ for your compositions? You like working on them and they're really good," he told me and I shrugged.

"My music teacher is about fifty-five. I don't think he'd appreciate a hip-hop beat when we're all supposed to be classical pianists," I pointed out. Jimin thought for a second. I was so glad he was here; this had been on my mind a lot lately but other things had been overshadowing it.

"Why don't you write a song about your piano? Bet you'd get the marks for it," he joked with a smirk. Except my brain pinged. Jimin noticed my face change and laughed, "Are you actually gonna do it?" he asked. I was still in idea mode and scrabbled for a notebook. Jimin silently passed me a pen and watched me scribble some things down. That was such a good idea. Thank god for Jimin. After a while, I brought myself back to reality. Jimin was still watching me.

"…what?" I asked and he giggled.

"Done yet?" he asked with fake exasperation. I blushed,

"Sorry. That was just an amazing idea and I didn't want to forget it. It… might not work, but I'll try. I might not be able to do it that well, though." Jimin pushed me.

"Don't lie to yourself. You really can do it, you dumbass. I know it." My head rang again and I wrote it down. Jimin smiled proudly. "I mean, you could always write a song about me or something," he mumbled. I laughed.

"You, piano, same thing. I'll write you something soon enough, kay? For now, I gotta go ask someone for notes. I ran out of a lecture to see hyung so he'd better be grateful." I pushed Jimin slightly and he rolled dramatically onto the floor.

"Noo, hyungie, don't leave me like this!" he begged exaggeratedly. I smiled fondly.

"Minnie, I'll be five minutes." I was about to leave when my heart pulled. I picked up my notepad again and wrote _don't leave like this_. This was going to be interesting to write.

That night, long after Jimin had left, I was sitting in my bed in the dark. Writing about my piano all day had been an interesting experience and almost every other sentence Jimin said had sparked something in my head that inspired me. I looked down at my notepad and read through all of the scribbles,

_When I was fed up and lost  
Back then when I fell into a pit of despair  
Even when I pushed you away  
Even when I resented meeting you  
You were firmly by my side  
You didn't have to say anything  
So don't ever let go of my hand  
I won't let you go ever again_

And I really couldn't tell if I was writing about my piano or my boyfriend. I didn't think it mattered. I just put it away and went to sleep.


	56. Chapter 56 - JK

**this was definitely not an excuse to rant about biology ;-;**

**_56 – JK focus_**

Jimin stepped off the bus and Jungkook squealed in excitement. It had been a while since he had been seen in school uniform and some other people in his grade were already whispering about it. Jungkook bit back the urge to hit them and ran to meet his friend. He hugged Jimin tightly.

"I'm glad you're back, Jimin-ssi!" he grinned. Taehyung pouted.

"How come you're never this excited when you meet me?" he huffed and Jungkook laughed letting Jimin out of his death grip.

"You weren't dying, Tae," Jimin pointed out.

"We're all dying," Taehyung countered helpfully. "Come on, let's go," he smiled and pulled the other two by the hand. Jungkook was happy to have another part of his life back to normal. Things felt a little hopeless when Jimin got sick, and then when he met up with Mingyu; Seokjin's accident felt like hell and Jungkook had cried so much, praying that it was all just a dream, a horrible dream. Thank the stars he was okay. They would go to see him after school.

"How was your date yesterday?" Jungkook asked Jimin and watched him daze out slightly like he always did when he was talking about Yoongi.

"Great. Oh! We were talking and we had an idea. When Seokjin-hyung gets better, what would you think of getting Bangtan back together? Yoongi-hyung has all of these amazing demos and lyric ideas lined up and it'd be so fun!" he rambled, all in one breath. Jungkook beamed. That sounded amazing. Last year, when they had performed in front of audiences and things, he had been so nervous. He knew he could definitely do better now he had more confidence.

"Whoa, that sounds pretty cool," Taehyung mused. "But, really, Yoongi-hyung suggested this? He does remember that this requires movement, right?" he joked. Jimin snickered.

"Okay, so maybe he didn't. But it does sound like a good idea, right? Seokjin-hyung will be up and walking in a few months but until then we can just work on writing songs and singing them. We can even start up that Youtube channel we talked about," he suggested. It did all sound very tempting. None of Jungkook's exams this year were important anyway, so he could really focus on it. He had been thinking about joining Jimin's dance crew once it was running again. This was something that he could throw himself into.

"I'm in. It'll be nice to use my voice for something other than yelling at Taehyungie," Jungkook sighed and Jimin laughed.

"Oh, God, what's he been doing?" he asked.

"He chased the ducks!" Jungkook whined.

"Hey, someone asked me to!" Taehyung defended. Jungkook rolled his eyes.

"That's not a valid defence," he refuted. Jimin just smiled at them both.

"You're cute," he commented and the fight was forgotten as soon as Taehyung kissed Jungkook on the cheek. Jungkook wanted to scream at him, "_we're still in school, stop it!" _but he couldn't bring himself to protest. He just blushed helplessly, subjecting himself to more cooing from the other two. He hated and loved it simultaneously.

Now came the hard bit. Jungkook was still a year younger than Taehyung and Jimin and shared none of their classes. He waved goodbye in the corridor and slunk to his classroom. As he sat down at his desk, already bored, he saw a sheet of paper on the table in front of him. It had a few signatures on it but no title. Jungkook frowned. He picked it up and turned to the person next to him.

"Hey, what's this?" he asked. The guy, Dongmin, smiled.

"Oh, Jamie's starting an art club. Sign if you want to join," he explained. Jungkook mumbled a thank you and looked at the list. It was a small group of people and Jungkook got on well with them all. Jamie was nice and good at art, too. And Jungkook did want to get better at art. After considering it for a few minutes, he signed his name on the list and passed it on, resuming his task of being bored without his friends. Luckily, class started fairly quickly and gave him something to focus on.

Except… Jungkook had absolutely no idea what was going on. He vaguely wondered if he had fallen asleep for the first ten minutes of the lesson because he didn't understand it at all. Something about sugar phosphate and messenger rNA. Jungkook stared blankly at the teacher as he spoke, barely able to process a word. Biology made little sense to Jungkook at the best of times but now it was just flying over his head.

"Jungkook?" The teacher had asked him a question. Jungkook felt flushed. He looked at the board, and then down at his sparse notes and then at his textbook (he was pretty sure it was opened on the wrong page anyway). He sighed.

"I'm sorry, I don't know," he confessed. A few people in the class whispered something, maybe trying to help him, but Jungkook couldn't make out what they were saying. The teacher, Mr Kang, tilted his head.

"Really?" he prompted and Jungkook nodded ashamedly. Mr Kang moved his attention away from Jungkook and picked someone else itching to show their knowledge. Jungkook listened to the answer and was no closer to understanding what the hell an anti-codon was. He looked at the clock and cringed as he saw that there were still twenty minutes of the lesson to go. He rested his head on the desk and tried to absorb as much of the information as possible.

Eventually, after what felt like hours of meaningless chatter, the bell rang and the teacher dismissed the class. Feeling sufficiently stupid, Jungkook packed up and went to leave.

"Oh, Jungkook, can I see you for a second?" Mr Kang called after him. Jungkook sighed and walked back to the desk. "Were you struggling with this topic?" he asked and Jungkook nodded, red-faced.

"Yes, sir," he answered. Mr Kang hummed.

"Are you free after school tomorrow? I can give you a private lesson if you'd like," he offered and Jungkook breathed a sigh of relief.

"That sounds great, sir, thank you so much." He bowed politely.

"No problem. Oh, and I heard there was an accident involving your friends, is everyone okay?" he asked. Jungkook was slightly surprised that he knew about that, even more so that he was concerned about it. He really liked this teacher.

"Yes, sir, we're mostly back to normal, I think. My hyung's still in hospital but he's getting much better," he recalled and Mr Kang gave a friendly smile.

"Ah, that's good to hear. Don't stress yourself out too much, okay? Go have a nice break," he said and Jungkook bowed again, significantly spritelier, before rushing out to go and find Taehyung and Jimin. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and quickly added the lesson to his diary. His week was getting a little bit busy but he could handle it. As he walked through the corridor, someone stopped him. They were in the year above.

"Oh, Jeon Jungkook, you sing, right?" they asked. Before Jungkook could answer, she continued. "If it's not too much trouble, could you record my music composition? I wrote it for male vocals and it's due in two days' time. I'll send it to you," she smiled and Jungkook didn't want to say no.

"Of course! I'll do it as soon as I can!" he offered and she grinned.

"You're a lifesaver, thank you so much!" she waved as she dashed away. Jungkook didn't even know if he knew her name, but if she wanted her number, she could get it from Jimin or Taehyung. Right! That's what he was supposed to be doing. He put the composition in his diary and carried on trying to find them. His phone buzzed and he took it out again to see a message from Jamie.

_Heya! Just wanted to say that art club will run every Monday, Wednesday and Thursday lunchtime from now today xx_

Jungkook sighed and opened his diary app yet again.

"Jeon Jungkook! No phones in school, please!" a teacher called at him and Jungkook froze.

"Oh, I'm just- " he tried but the teacher plucked the phone out of his hand.

"You can get it back at the end of the day," she told him and walked away. Great. What the hell was he going to do now? Before he could even begin to contemplate his choices, the bell rang shrilly in his ear. He hadn't even gotten to see Taehyung. With a heavy sigh, Jungkook ran to his next class, telling himself that everything would get better at lunch.


End file.
